On The Street Where You Live
by Madeleine Eloise
Summary: What do you do when you've only got one year left of high school? You give it all you got! A Fabrevans-fic telling about the struggles of high school seniors - more or less, anyhow. Set after the second season. Hope you enjoy!
1. Way Too Soon

**Chapter 1: Way too soon  
>Chapter song: "On the street where you live" – Nat King Cole<br>Time: August**

_"…People stop and stare. They don't bother me._  
><em>For there's nowhere else on earth that I'd rather be.<em>  
><em>Let the time go by, I won't care if I<em>  
><em>Can be here on the street where you live."<em>

As the last chord swam out of the speakers, Quinn turned off her car radio. She looked out of the windshield at the cloudless sky. It was August and the summer break had ended. _Way too soon_, she thought to herself. She was wearing a light green baby doll dress with a pattern of tiny dark green flowers and black ballet flats. As she straightened her dress, she noticed all the bruises on her knees. _How do I manage to hurt myself so badly?_ She wondered in her mind. _I was head cheerleader. Why do I not have more grace?_

She slowly opened the car door and stepped out. Although it was early in the morning, the sun had already risen pretty high and was now prickling at her arms. She whimpered slightly, but then reminded herself that sunshine was a good thing. It made her skin darker and her hair lighter._ Good thing I remembered the sun screen this morning though_, she thought as she crossed the burning hot parking lot.

As she got closer to the school, she suddenly felt very exposed. She was completely sure that everybody was staring at her. But why would they? She was not anything special any longer. She was not the head cheerleader. She was not dating the school quarterback. She was not even prom queen. She was just that glee club loser who had gotten pregnant as a freshman. As those thoughts went through her head, she almost turned around and went home, but immediately got a hold of herself. _Okay, so you're not an interesting person anymore… but you're still Quinn Fabray and Quinn Fabray does not give up. Especially not on the first day of senior year. _She shook her head slightly before lifting her chin upwards and then she entered the doors of McKinley High.

The halls were buzzing of the small talk from all the students. Quinn recognized most of them and it was easy to spot the freshmen. Those were the ones looking scared to death as they were desperately trying to locate their lockers. She remembered her first day two years ago; after five minutes three different boys had offered to help her find a locker including another freshmen, who hadn't even found his own yet. She remembered thinking that the next three years were going to be paradise with the amount of attention she was going to get.

_Oh well, that was back then_, she thought. _Before everything had happened. Puck, Finn, Beth, Sam, Finn again, Rachel, Zizes, Lucy Caboosey, Sam and Mercedes . _Now she'd do anything just to blend in, but she knew that wasn't easy. Not with her history and not with her looks. Even when she tried toning down her make-up and wearing boring clothes she still got admiring looks from various boys who didn't seem to care about her history, her attitude or her mood swings. So she might as well look her best, even though she was only interested in the admiring looks from one specific guy, but he was looking at someone else now, a friend of Quinn's, so she had given up on that.

As she turned a corner, something cold hit her arm. She looked to her right, where a nerdy looking freshmen had just been slushied by a jock, who (though a feet taller than the victim) also was a freshmen. _Way too soon_, Quinn thought to herself for the second time that morning as she wiped off the slush ice sprays that had hit her arm.

She walked to her usual locker and opened it, slightly depressed at its emptiness. She then opened her purse and began to unload. She was still placing useful things in her locker when a set of brown arms draped her chest.

"Hey Q," a teasing voice whispered in her ear. "Enjoyed your summer, did ya?"

Quinn smiled and took a small perfume flacon from her purse and placed it in her locker

"We missed you, you know." Another voice said behind her. "Lord Tubbington too."

Quinn turned around facing her two favorite former cheerleaders. "I missed you too. How was lake Erie?"

"Oh, we never went. We just stayed in my backyard all summer making out by the pool." Brittany said.

As the shorter blonde raised her eyebrows in surprise (although not really surprised), Santana scoffed. "What Brittany means is…" she paused for a moment "that we didn't want to spend our summer with some losers down by a loser lake."

"You didn't think Lake Erie was a loser lake before I left," Quinn stated slowly.

"Maybe not, but then we discovered that Puck and his loser girlfriend were going too. Now, Erie is officially a loser lake..." At the beginning of summer Zizes had dumped Puckerman for a girl on her wrestling team but Puck being Puck, he had quickly found another girlfriend, Maya, who'd be a junior this year. She was friendly and pretty good looking which resulted in an instant dislike from Santana's side. "…and we's be not going to a loser lake!" Santana smiled triumphantly and Brittany nodded in agreement.

Quinn grinned and drew both girls in for a tight hug. "I really have missed you guys," she laughed and the two other girls laughed with her.

"So, how was Paris?" Santana asked as they pulled away from each other.

"It was…" Quinn closed her eyes imagining she was still strolling down the Champs-Élysées "…magical." She had visited France with her mother. They had just been planning on staying there for a week, but ended up extending their vacation as they were having so much fun and since neither of them had other plans for the summer.

"Did you go shopping? Meet any cute French boys?" the Latina asked licking her lips.

"French boys can't French kiss. That's why they call it French." Brittany said looking deadly serious.

Quinn smiled and said no, when her eye caught the one thing she had dreaded to see the entire summer. Sam and Mercedes were standing close at the other end of the hall, both of them smiling and talking intimately. _Way too soon_, Quinn mused for the third time that day. Her smile faded and she sighed lightly, she thought, but Santana quickly picked up and turned around, trying to determine what had made her friend's face drop.

"Oh. That's why you didn't meet any cute French boy. You're still caught up in that dorky southern boy," she snorted.

"No I'm not!" Quinn said a little too fast. "It's just never pleasant seeing your ex being happy." _Oh God, do I always sound so selfish?_ She thought absentmindedly.

"Right, and if that was Finn and Rachel Berry standing over there, you'd have the same uptight look on your face."

"Yes, of course… well no, but they aren't… Finn isn't… I don't…" Quinn turned around, searching in her purse for a box of tissues, which she placed in the back of her locker.

"Let it go, Q. I just don't get why you're still obsessing over him. I've slept with that nerd" Santana pointed towards the blonde boy "and he ain't nothing special."

"Not really what I need to hear right now, San."

"Whatevs. Our classes are about to begin. We'll see you at lunch. Come on, Brit." The two of them twirled their pinkies and started walking down the hall.

Quinn sighed, heavily this time, and headed towards her own class.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>After seeing the numerous previews and teasers for the third season of Glee, I'm afraid I'll be a bit disappointed given I'm a major Quinn-fan. So today I imagined how I'd like the third season to be and thus I wrote this. I'm not exactly sure where it's going, though I have basically already written the second chapter. I'll upload it later tonight after I've spell checked it thorough fully. However, English is (as you've probably figured out by now) not my native language, so there might still be some errors - as there probably is in this chapter.<br>Alors, I hope you'll stay tuned and... have a nice day :-)


	2. Danland

**Chapter 2: Danland  
>Chapter song: "All The Things You Are" – Ella Fitzgerald<br>Time: August**

Quinn's first class of her first day of her last year was English literature and she ended up sitting behind Rachel and Finn. Rachel kept caressing Finn's right arm and nudging her head at his shoulder and although a public display of emotions usually made Quinn feel uncomfortable – especially when the displayer was Rachel Berry – she didn't mind so much as Finn and Rachel were the only ones in the class she actually considered friends. And frankly she didn't really feel any grudge towards either of them any longer. Maybe she had grown a bit over summer. As soon as their teacher had ended his introduction and the students were left with worksheets, Quinn's ex and her former enemy both turned around.

"Hey," Finn said awkwardly tapping his finger on Quinn's paper.

She looked up and gave him a genuine smile. "Hi."

They exchanged a look of mutual respect and acceptance _and maybe just mutual appreciation of each other's presence?_ Quinn thought when Rachel interrupted their moment.

"Quinn, it's so good seeing you again. We've been so busy dating, I haven't even thought about you during the summer. You look really good though, doesn't she look good Finn?" Rachel asked, obviously a little nervous about the situation of the three of them together._ It's okay Quinn, you're allowed to find Rachel a little annoying without necessarily being back to your old hateful self_, Quinn mused resting her gaze on the brunette.

"She does," Finn said calmly, not really affected by his girlfriend's tenseness. "How was Paris?"

Quinn turned her eyes to Finn and was quiet for a moment. She couldn't really think of a better adjective than the one she'd already used once that morning, so she simply repeated herself: "Magical." She smiled and then continued "You two really ought to go there sometime. Rachel, I think you'd love the Moulin Rouge," Rachel frowned a bit, so Quinn quickly added "it's a decent place... not like the movie. And Finn, I think you'd love the cafés there. They have a huge selection of Danish pastries."

"Thanks, but I think I'd rather get my Danish in Danland" Finn snorted.

"Denmark," Rachel and Quinn said in unison.

They all laughed.

The three of them continued their small talk until the bell rang. Then Finn kissed Rachel on the cheek saying he had to meet up with Artie before he hurried out the door. The two girls picked up their things and headed out the same way a couple of minutes later.

"Speaking of Artie…" Rachel began. "His party was-"

Quinn quickly figured out where this was going, and she didn't want to go there. "Oh yeah, I guess that was the last time we saw each other." Artie had thrown a come-together at the beginning of July partly to celebrate that they were done with junior year and partly to introduce his new girlfriend Anna: a Cheerio and also a senior this year. Of course Quinn had already known who she was, but she was a rather shy girl, so they'd never really talked. At the same occasion Puck had brought Maya and Sam had brought Mercedes. For Quinn it was an adequately frustrating evening as an end to frustrating year. She spent the next day with Santana and Brittany and the day after that she flew to Paris with her mother. "Anna is a pretty nice girl so I guess she and Artie make a good couple." Quinn tried to seem as oblivious as possible, but she was forgetting whom she was talking to.

"She is, and it's nice that Brittany and Artie are still friends. Though that wasn't exactly what I meant to talk about." Rachel said hesitantly as they were walking down the hall.

"I know," Quinn said sharply

"Look, I know Mercedes is your best friend and I know you aren't going to talk with her about this. I don't mean to be pushy, I just want to let you know, that I'm here for you if you need me. I know I talk a lot, but I can also be a pretty good listener," Rachel offered.

Quinn couldn't help but smile a little. "Well, thanks Rach. That's nice to know. I am okay though." She stopped at her locker and Rachel turned to face her.

"No. No, you're not," Rachel said firmly before she turned around again and headed towards her own locker.

Quinn was just about to argue, but the short girl was already out of earshot. She did her thing at her locker and then started to walk towards her next class. Unfortunately she ended up behind Sam and Mercedes who were holding hands.

_Oh, you've got to be kidding me_, Quinn thought as she slowed down her tempo. She had been a little bummed that the Glee Club didn't start until the second day of school as she had been longing to see her friends, but now, knowing that she'd have to face her ex and her best friend (_former?_ She questioned herself), she was kind of dreading Glee Club.

When she looked up again, Sam and Mercedes were gone. Letting out a heavy sight Quinn continued to her next class.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>I know it's short, but I quickly loose my overview if I write something too long. The 'chapter song' is not necessarily a song featured in the chapter; it can also simply be the song I was listening to when I wrote the chapterthe song that inspired me to write this chapter - as is the case with this song. I mostly write the name of the song down for my own sake, so that I can bring forth the same sentiment when I start on the next chapter. Thank you very much for the story alerts and reviews. To the anonymous person: I've tried to space it out a little more, I hope it helps... though, given you didn't read the first chapter, you probably won't read this one. For the rest of you, then! I hope it's more uncluttered now :-)


	3. Reminiscing

**Chapter 3: Reminiscing  
>Chapter song: "La Vie en Rose" – Édith Piaf<br>Time: August**

When the bell rang for the last time that day, Quinn hurried out of the school. She had had enough sightings of Sam and Mercedes for one day and now she just couldn't wait till she got home. She practically ran across the parking lot and slipped inside of her car. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, her hands resting on the turning wheel.

_After Artie's party in July Quinn had been so sad and felt so lonely but Paris had changed that. Sure she had thought about her ex-boyfriend and all of her mistakes the previous year, but they just didn't seem quite as important when you were eating an ice cream in front of le Sacre-Coeur listening to a busking playing "La Vie en Rose" on an accordion. She had been spending her days strolling around the town, walking up and down the small streets carefully taking everything in: the bright colours of the marquises of the shops, the sweet smell of macaroons from the bakeries, the playful sound of birds twittering and occasionally the ringing of a bicycle bell. Quinn couldn't remember when she had last seen anyone ride a bicycle in Lima. Never, perhaps? She mused while snorting quietly._

_She and her mother had rented a hotel room just minutes away from le Notre Dame, so every morning they'd been waken early by the sweet music of the church bells. Then they would get dressed and go down and buy a café crème at the café next to the hotel, which they would drink at their regular table next to la Seine. The two of them had gotten a long a lot better than Quinn had thought. They had been travelling to Paris every summer for many years, but usually they'd be pretty tired of each other after a week or so. This year was different. They had been having so much fun pretending to be natural Parisians, that they had extended their stay with weeks._

_Already on the second day of their trip Quinn had decided to spill her heart out to her mother, as her loneliness was eating her up. While they were enjoying croissants on a bench in le Jardin des Tuileries Quinn had told her mother everything from the previous year. How she had decided to be independent in junior year, but then she had met Sam, then she had lost him because of her cheating with Finn, her feelings regarding Finn, her clashes with Rachel, prom, Lauren Zizes, New York, her reunion with Santana and Brittany, her awkward relationship with Puck (her mother cringed slightly upon hearing her daughter mentioning the boy, who had taken her virginity after getting her drunk and then knocked her up), how she had been babysitting Sam's siblings, dating Finn, the funeral, her missing Mercedes…_

_Quinn had been talking for hours eventually letting a tear sliding down her cheek. Judy Fabray had been sitting quietly next to her daughter listening carefully, padding her knee every once in a while whispering "Oh, honey." When Quinn was done talking she was sobbing loudly, so Judy had wrapped her arms around her and had begun rocking back and forth. Quinn had leaned her head upon her mother's shoulder and Judy had kissed her forehead mumbling soothing words._

_"Didn't you have any good experiences last year?" She asked when Quinn had started calming down._

_"Yes. I did. They're just difficult to remember right now"_

_"That's normal, sweetie."_

_"Is it?" Quinn looked up at her mother blinking with her wet eyelashes. "Is it really normal to feel this down when you just turned 18? Is it normal to be this unhappy?"_

_"Well maybe not, but you haven't had a very normal high school experience, have you? Look Quinnie, I know you feel like hell right now and you might have difficulties seeing your life continue on from this point. But trust me, it will. Life always goes on no matter what happens to you – no matter how miserable you are. Often times you just need to get away from everything to get the bigger picture."_

_Quinn sniffed._

_"And look where we are!" Judy gestured with her hand, making Quinn aware of their enchanting surroundings. "We're in Paris, honey. Could you possibly imagine a better place to get the bigger picture?"_

_Quinn smiled and sniffed a last time._

_"I know it's hard right now, being your age and… being you. But trust me; everything's going to be okay. Don't worry about everything at home. Just enjoy yourself where you are right now. Everything is good here. You're just sitting on a bench in a wonderful park in the sun with your mother who adores you," Judy paused and wiped her daughter's tear stained cheeks "and who happens to have done very well this year moneywise. So what do you say we go shopping? We could take the metro to Saint Germain and find some of those cute vintage dresses you like."_

_Quinn gave her mother a big smile for the first time in six months or so, Judy thought to herself and hugged her._

_"Thanks, mom."_

_"You're welcome, darling."_

_They had spent the rest of the day trying on dresses and Quinn had found a beautiful midnight blue one with a retro cut. She had fallen for it right away, and of course it had fitted her perfectly._

_"Maybe it's just a little boring," her mother had said. "It's beautiful, but at your age, you're allowed to wear much more daring dresses than that."_

_"But I love these dresses, you know I do," Quinn had answered. "And with a pearl necklace, this'll be perfect for any occasion. I just need to buy myself a pearl necklace." Quinn had bought the dress for 220 euros._

_Afterwards they had consumed their dinner at the restaurant at the Eiffel Tower. From that point on Quinn had had a marvelous trip, allowing herself to enjoy life._

_When she had returned to Lima in August her suitcase had been full of new clothes and perfumes, while her mind had been full of memories. She had felt a lot better than before she went away, now realizing how much she had missed her fellow Glee clubbers. She had tried to imagine Sam and Mercedes being together as a couple telling herself that she was fine with, that she could be happy with Mercedes finally falling in love with someone. Though as soon as she had laid eyes on the couple in the hallway her heart had dropped and she instantly knew that it was going to be a long time before she was okay with it._

Quinn slowly opened her eyes realizing she was all alone in the parking lot except for the usual eight or nine kids who were forced to take the school bus home. They were sitting just outside the fence looking awfully tired and she felt bad for them – those were the ones whose parents couldn't afford an extra car and didn't have the time to deliver and pick up their kids. Most of them were freshmen as juniors and seniors often just got rides from their friends. Though one of them looked a little too old to be a freshman, but Quinn had never seen him before. "Must be a new kid," she said to herself but didn't put much thought into it. She put her key in the ignition and drove away from McKinley High.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>This chapter is just a - oh, what do you fanfic-writers call it - a filler? I know there may seem to be a lot of useless information, but I'm a grand sucker for set-ups and pay-offs. For those of you who don't know, a set-up is a piece of information that is given at a time when it may seem useless. However, later on there will be a pay-off where the set-up becomes useful. So don't worry, I'm not just blabbering in this chapter :-) Thank you for the reviews and the story alerts, they make me so happy! I expect the next chapter might be a filler(? Please corrrect me if I'm wrong) too, but I promise the action will begin in the fifth chapter with a lot more interaction between the main characters. 'Till then!<p> 


	4. Changes & Replacements

**Chapter 4: Changes and replacements  
>Chapter song: "Just you, just me" – Nat King Cole<br>Time: August**

* * *

><p>"Oh, hi honey. How was your first day?" Judy chirped as Quinn entered the house. She was sitting on the couch in the living room with a glass of wine on the table and a magazine in her lap. Judy didn't have to go to work until the following week.<p>

"Fine," Quinn sighed with a small smile as she threw her keys at the kitchen counter. She poured herself a glass of water and went into the living room, where her mother was eyeballing her.

"Well, was it nice to see your friends?"

"Yeah, sure."

"And did they have a nice summer break?"

"Guess so."

"All right Quinn, so far you've said fine, yeah, sure, guess and so. Not very impressive for a girl with your vocabulary. Would you like to elaborate, or should I just keep on fishing?"

Quinn rolled her eyes slightly. "Sorry mom. But nothing excited happened. Really. I saw Rachel, Santana, Finn and Brittany. That was kind of it, those were the only ones I had classes with today."

"And you didn't bother to say hello to your other friends?"

"It doesn't work like that mom, you know that. The breaks aren't long enough for tracking down all your friends."

"Lunch break is."

"Well yeah, but…" In Paris Quinn had gotten used to eating four times a day excluding the occasional pastry that followed with the coffee, which resulted in her returning to Lima with a healthy appetite. Therefore she had been starving when their lunch break began that day. But as soon as she entered McKinley High canteen, she saw Sam and Mercedes sitting with the Changs. Sam was feeding Mercedes a spoonful of jelly. Needless to say that Quinn suddenly had suffered a complete loss of appetite. She turned around on her heel and hurried to the girl's bathroom. She had locked herself in a stall and had cried her heart out while telling herself (_out loud? I don't even remember_, she thought) that she was not going to let their relationship ruin her senior year. "…something came up" Quinn finished and looked down at her hands resting in her lap.

Judy frowned and asked "What came up?"

Quinn looked up and her mother saw her tear filled eyes.

"Oh. I'm sorry dear." She thought for a moment. "Does that mean you didn't get anything to eat today?"

"I suppose so." Quinn hadn't really thought about it, but now her stomach was actually aching from not eating in so many hours. She made a subtle grimace at the pain, but instantly turned it into a smile when she noticed her mother's worried look. "It's okay mom, I'll survive."

"Do you want me to make you something?"

"It's no problem, I can make it myself-"

"No no, sweetie," Judy interrupted. "You go to your room and relax. I remember how exhausting first days can be. I'll bring your food up in a moment."

"Okay, thanks mom," Quinn answered and went to her room.

Less than ten minutes later Judy knocked on the door to her daughter's room and tugged at the doorknob with her free hand. She entered gracefully, careful not to tip the tray her left hand was holding on to.

Quinn was lying flat on her stomach on her bed playing with something shiny. Judy quickly recognized it as the golden necklace Quinn had bought in the Latin Quarter near the Sorbonne University. The  
>appendage was a tiny golden silhouette of the Eiffel Tower.<p>

_"This way I'll always carry a piece of Paris with me," she had stated grinningly while handing the hawker a couple of euros. Judy smiled strained as she didn't really feel comfortable being around the hawker, who at that point was staring hungrily at Quinn._

_"Honey, I'm afraid that man is just as French as I'm African," Judy had said nervously._

_"Maybe," Quinn had murmured. "But this is the epitome of Paris-" She had held up the little golden tower, making it glisten in the sunlight. "It's beauty in it's purest shape."_

_Though still feeling very uncomfortable, Judy couldn't help but laugh. Sometimes her daughter was just _the_ whimsiest person she had ever met in her entire life.  
><em>  
>"I'd completely forgotten about this," Quinn said without looking up. "You know, I put it in my suitcase when we got home the day I bought it so it wouldn't get lost. I didn't find until just now."<p>

"It's beautiful, honey. Do you think you'll wear it?"

"Uhm, I'd like to. But then I have to replace it with my cross." She looked a little torn. "Would that be inappropriate?"

"Quinnie, your father is the strict Christian, not me. You have been going to church every Sunday for your entire life. I think God will forgive you for not wearing that torture instrument, upon which his son died, around your neck for just a little while."

Quinn giggled at her mother's indifference and figured that she probably had had a little more than that one glass of wine located on the sofa table. She shook her head and turned it to look at her mother and it wasn't until then she noticed the tray Judy was holding.

"Oh, sorry mom." Quinn quickly grabbed the tray from her mother and put it on her bedside table. "You know, you can't keep spoiling me like this. I'm 18 now and not a little girl anymore."

"You may not be a little girl anymore, but you're still _my_ little girl." Judy said with an affectionate tone. "I think you _have_ changed over the summer." She turned around and headed towards the door.

Just as she entered the hall, she heard Quinn murmur "Thanks mom. I love you."

Judy smiled and closed the door behind her.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>Oh, this is terribly short and I'm aware that it's been a while since I last updated. I sincerely apologize, school has just been hell. Although, we ARE moving forward; as I wrote in the previous chapter, this is the last chapter of Quinn's first day. In the next chapter the story will really take off. I'm actually almost done with the fifth chapter and - hopefully - I'll finish it on Monday or Tuesday. To all of you kind souls who write reviews: Thank you so very much, you really make my day! You really do! So please don't give up on this story, even though I'm a lazy turtle. I swear this story will go somewhere very soon :-)<p> 


	5. PryDew

**Chapter 5: Pry-dew  
>Chapter song: "Dear Hearts and Gentle People" – Bing Crosby<br>Time: August**

* * *

><p>AN: There'll be some French language in this chapter; there's a translation of it after each sentence in the square parenthese: []<p>

* * *

><p><em>You can do this<em>, Quinn thought as she looked at herself in her locker mirror. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear before closing her locker. It had grown out over summer and was now just down to beneath her shoulders. Then she straightened her cream coloured dress with her hands and headed towards the choir room.

_It's okay, it'll be okay. You can do this_ she repeated to herself, but she was practically panting as she approached the open door. She stopped just outside, took a deep breath and then stepped in.

Santana and Brittany were sitting at the back row pecking each other's cheeks and Puck was sitting next to them not being able to tear away his gaze from the atypical couple. Rachel and Finn were sitting in front of them leafing through a music book, then an empty seat and then Mike and Tina. Artie and his cheerleader girlfriend Anna were sitting in the front row, him showing her his biceps, telling her how he didn't have to work out since rolling around his chair was enough work out. No sign of Sam or Mercedes. Quinn let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in.

As soon as the others noticed her, Tina jumped up and ran over to her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Quinn! We've missed you! How come we haven't heard from you all summer?"

"Missed you too. My mother and I decided to extend our stay in Paris. I only got home a few days ago." Quinn smiled, shortly forgetting about her ex-boyfriend.

"You've got to tell me all about it. Come sit next me." She pulled Quinn over to the rest of the group. Quinn hugged Artie on her way and waved at Anna before sitting down between Finn and Tina. Mike, sitting on the other side of Tina, lent out a hand for Quinn to high five. Then she felt a warm breath on her neck and turned around to face Puck who was blinking at her.

"Looking good, Fabray."

"Puckerman." Quinn sighed although she couldn't help but smile a little.

Rachel leaned in over Finn and put a hand on Quinn's lap. "Have you talked to Mercedes yet?" she asked curiously. Finn just looked straight ahead, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

"N-no." Quinn said. Of course she had seen the couple numerous times during that day, but she didn't have the guts to face them just yet. At least not if she could avoid it.

"Mercedes has been asking about you," Tina said. "She's missed you."

"I guess I've missed her too." Quinn said unsure if that sounded bitchy or not. _Did I intend for it to sound bitchy?_ She thought, once again unsure.

Suddenly the buzzing of the room died away as a certain blonde boy entered the room followed by a very nervous looking Mercedes.

_Oh god_, Quinn thought as she saw them holding hands. _I'm so not ready for this. Not yet not yet not yet._ She hastily looked down at her hands in her lap. _What am I going to do, will I never be able to look at either of them ever again? And why the hell is everybody so damn silent?_ She tried to muster up some anger, but she only felt scared.

Luckily Mr. Schue entered the choir room just as Quinn's head was about to explode.

"Welcome back everybody, it's good seeing you all again," he said cheerfully while Sam and Mercedes found their seats.

They sat down on the first row in front of Rachel and Finn. Just before Mercedes sat down she looked up at Quinn and as if planned Quinn raised her head in that exact moment. Their eyes locked for a brief second. Quinn gave Mercedes a small smile and nodded subtly. Mercedes let out a small sigh and sat down next to her boyfriend.

Mr. Schue began to talk and Quinn stared straight ahead trying to ignore the light hair she could see out of the corner of her eye. Somewhere very far away she could hear Santana asking Puck about his loser girlfriend and Puck explaining how Maya had bigger boobs than Santana and that they weren't even fake. A millions thoughts were running Quinn's head and she felt as if she was going to puke, when she saw Sam wrapping his arm around Mercedes' shoulders. She was just about to get up to escape the incredibly tense situation, when the principal stepped into the choir room. After him followed a boy Quinn hadn't seen before.

"Figgins," Mr. Schue exclaimed. "How can we help you?"

_No, that's not true,_ Quinn thought. _I have seen him before. Wasn't he one of the kids waiting for the school bus?_

"William, let me introduce Mr. Prideaux (_pry-dew)_. He's an exchange student from France."

"It's Prideaux (_pree-DOH),_" the boy said smilingly with a heavy accent. He had long goofy looking legs, slender built with chestnut coloured hair combed to one side. He was wearing a blue shirt with short sleeves, black jeans and brand new red all stars.

_Welcome to America,_ Quinn mused chuckling slightly, completely distracted from Sam and his new girlfriend.

"Yes, well-" Figgins continued. "Mr. Prideaux (_pry-dew)_ would like to join the Glee Club. He said he wants to sing, but he didn't know what the word 'glee' meant when he was to choose his classes."

"Okay then, welcome to the club Mr. Prideaux." Mr. Schue smiled.

Figgins leaned into the Spanish teacher and whispered "He doesn't know the language very well," before exiting the choir room.

Mr. Schue put his hand on the new boy's shoulder. "We're down with one guy anyway, so you'll fit right in. There's has been some changes made since last year, but Anna is new as well," he pointed to Artie's girlfriend. "So you should have no problem. Are you staying the entire year or just the first semester?"

The boy looked confused and scratched his arm. "I-I… I don't understand," he said slowly.

"Oh, okay-" Mr. Schue said, realizing the modest size of the French boy's vocabulary. "Well, Kurt speaks French fluently…"

"Kurt is not here today, Mr. Schue." Finn said. "He's still in Michigan with his dad visiting his grandparents. He won't be back until the first week of September."

"Ah," Mr. Schue said looking slightly worried before turning his eyes to the new boy. "I'm afraid you'll have to-"

"Wait," Mercedes interrupted. "Quinn just spent the summer in Paris. Maybe she can help him."

Sam cringed slightly upon hearing his current girlfriend saying the name of his former girlfriend, but luckily it didn't seem like Mercedes noticed.

"Quinn?" Mr. Schue asked

Quinn shifted slightly in her seat, suddenly feeling very exposed. "Th-that's probably not a good idea. I-I only speak a little French. And poorly."

"Essayez," the exchange student said smiling encouragingly. _["Try"]_

Quinn took a deep breath. "Well, uhm, je ne parle pas très bien franςais et je ne sais pas si je peux t'aider..." She swallowed and looked down on her hands in her lap. _["Well, uhm, I don't speak French very well and I'm not sure I'll be able to help you."]_

"N'arrêtez pas, vous êtes très bien!" The new boy laughed. "Ton accent est impressionnante, es-tu sûr que tu n'es pas d'origine française?" _["Don't stop, you're very good! __Your accent is impressive, are you sure you're not French?"]_

"Trop vite!" Quinn exclaimed. "Parlez lentement, s'il te plait." _["Too fast! Speak slowly, please."]_

"Désolé," the boy said grinningly. "Tu parles très bien français. Est ta famille française?" _["Sorry. You speak French very well. Is your family French?"]_

"Non, mais merci beaucoup" Quinn smiled. _["No, but thank you very much"]_

Sam didn't know one French word, but he could recognize a compliment in any language. Or rather he could recognize that grateful smile Quinn was giving this new dude at the moment. He'd seen that smile every time he complimented her. Well maybe not quite the same, but similar.

"It seems to be working fine," Mr. Schue said. "Mr. Prideaux, why don't you take a seat next to Quinn?" He pointed towards Quinn and the French guy picked up immediately. Tina and Mike scooted one seat to the side thus an empty seat appeared next to Quinn.

He sat down and took Quinn's hand, saying "Je m'appelle Augustin Prideaux." _["My name's Augustin Prideaux"]_

"Quinn Fabray," she answered with a hint of pride in her voice.

"Quinn." He repeated trying to imitate the American pronunciation.

Throughout the rest of the class Quinn would quietly translate everything Mr. Schue said into French and Augustin would nod and try to fathom the system of Glee Clubs and competitions. They'd have some difficulties every once in a while, but they got by by mixing English and French. When Mr. Schue let the group brainstorm regarding songs for sectionals, Quinn asked Augustin about his musical skills.

She discovered he was a trained choir singer, knew how to play the guitar and the piano but wasn't a very good dancer, or at least he said he wasn't. _There's something slightly feminine about him though - no, not feminine - classy about him, that makes me think otherwise_, Quinn mused while studying the new boy. He had dark brown eyes and a funny-looking face with big eyes, a big nose and a wry smile. On top of it all, he kept tugging his earlobe every time he had to ask her to repeat something. He did it just now.

"Excusez-moi?" he begged making his ear go red. _["Excuse me?"]_

"Ils chantent la plupart des solos. C'est pourquoi nous les appelons 'The Power Couple'." _["They sing the most of the solos. That's why we call them 'The Power Couple'"]_

"The po…" Augustin tried

"The power couple," Quinn said slowly while enunciating strongly.

"The power couple" he tried hesitantly.

"Oui. Exactement. Rachel and Finn are the power couple."

"Rachel and Finn are the power couple. D'accord. Et ils sont les seuls?"

"Quoi? Je ne comprend pas."_ ["What? I can't understand."]_

"Eh, is it… is there other power couple?"

"Oh!" Quinn exclaimed. "You want to know if there's another power couple…" she thought for a moment, not really sure what to answer. "Well. No" she said quietly, slightly taken aback by his question. She couldn't exactly explain to this stranger that there probably would have been another power couple if she hadn't acted so foolish last year. Furthermore she felt pretty sure that Sam was looking at her. He was still sitting on the front row across from her, but she could feel his gaze burning into her neck and shoulders.  
>If she had turned around, she would have discovered that she was right.<p>

"Sam!" Mercedes snapped her fingers in front of him. "Summer break is over and you better get your pretty little butt into this conversation and not let me do all the work."

"Right," Sam said turning his eyes to his girlfriend. She looked beautiful with her purple headband and her heavy golden earrings. "S-sorry." He laughed awkwardly afraid he had gotten busted, but she didn't really seem mad.

"I'd like to do a solo, but Mr. Schue already knows that. However he doesn't know that I'd also like to do a duet…"

Sam tilted his head a bit, not quite following.

"… with you," Mercedes said nervously. It came out as more of a question than a fact.

Sam gave her a big toothy smile and put his arm around her. "That'd be awesome!" he said, thinking how much fun they had had at nationals last year. She kissed his cheek and they both turned towards Mr. Schue as he began to speak.

"Right guys, it sounds like we're definitely getting somewhere. As I said I don't know if there's going to be a theme for sectionals yet, but I'll tell you as soon as I know. Good job today everybody, I think this year is going to be great."

Sam heard Quinn translating the last sentences for Augustin, right before the latter reached over and kissed her cheek while squeezing her hand.

Once again Sam cringed and this time Mercedes definitely noticed. She raised one eyebrow and left the choir room without bidding him farewell.

"Thank you, Quinn. You are grand help," Sam heard Augustin say as he picked up his things and ran after Mercedes.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading! <strong>And thus the story begins. First of all:  
>- To those of you who speak French: I apologize for the grammatical errors and simple language, mais je ne parle pas très bien franςais :-)<br>- To those of you who don't speak French: I hope this isn't too messy. I promise that mister Prideaux will indeed improve his English and therefore there'll be less French in the following chapters.  
>I have a pretty clear idea of where this is going, and I think (well, I hope) that it's going to be interesting. Thank you for your reviews and story alerts, they make me smile 3<p> 


	6. Samcedes

**Chapter 6: Samcedes  
>Chapter song: "Three Little Words" – Nat King Cole<br>Time: August**

* * *

><p>AN: There'll be some French language in this chapter; there's a translation of it after each sentence in the square parenthese: []<p>

* * *

><p>It was Monday afternoon and Quinn had just received her first major assignment in her social studies class. She went out in the school yard and sat down at a table to get it done. There were a few other students sporadically placed on the asphalt enjoying the sun while doing their worksheets. Quinn didn't recognize any of them so she pulled out her assignment paper and studied it carefully. Social studies wasn't difficult for her, so she wasn't really stressed about this despite it would have a large impact on her final grade.<p>

Pretty quickly her eyes started hurting from staring at the white paper. _I should've brought my shades_, she mused while she tied her blonde hair in a ponytail as her neck had already gotten a little sweaty.

After relaxing for a moment, waiting for a cool breeze that never came, she pulled out her social studies book and began looking up the key words of the assignment. As she ran her finger down a page in the book, she noticed movement in front of her. She looked up and into the eyes of Santana Lopez.

"Hey man eater,"

"Hello Santana." Quinn sighed, not really in the mood.

"So tell me: how does a French guy French kiss?"

She was wearing a very low cut top and as she leaned across the table Quinn had a full view of her dramatic cleavage. Suddenly, the blonde felt a lot more aware of her own modest bosom. She instinctively yanked her own dress up a bit, not interested in exposing as much skin as the girl sitting across from her.

"I already told you, I didn't hook up with anyone in Paris. I went there with my mother, for Christ's sake."

"Uh-uh Q, I'm not talking about Paris. I'm talking about that cute French guy right here in Lima, Ohio."

"Wh-what?" Quinn stuttered slightly confused. "Oh, Augustin."

"Yes, Augustin!" Santana grimaced trying to parody Quinn's French accent. "What do his lips taste like? Snails?" She asked teasingly.

"Oh god, Santana. He's barely been here a week and you seriously think I've already made out with him?" Quinn scoffed not even paying attention to the slightly racist comment her friend had just made.

"You don't need more than a week to determine whether or not you want to hook up with someone. And he sure made his mind up at the last glee rehearsal."

"What do you mean?"

Santana smirked. "Oh please Q, you're the smart one of us, so don't play dumb. He was totally checking you out the entire time."

"San, I really don't think he-"

"Yes he was," the Latina interrupted. And if you could stop staring at Sammy boy, you'd see so yourself."

"I was not staring at him" Quinn spat while furrowing her eyebrows.

"Yes, you were. Come on Quinn, you practically fainted when he and Mercedes walked into the choir room. Plus your face turned green as soon as he put his arm around her. Everybody saw it."

Quinn bit her lip in anger and looked away as she felt the tears beginning to gather in her eyes. _Man, I _really_ should've brought my shades_, she thought once again as she tried to blink away the tears.

Santana backed off slightly when she saw the hurt look on her friend's face.

"Why do you care so much about him now?" Santana asked

"I don't, it's just…" Quinn gazed at Santana. "What do you mean 'now'?"

"Well, you really didn't seem to care when I went out with Sam. And I was all up in your face back then. Mercedes doesn't even look at you, she's too scared of hurting you."

"I did care back then. But your relationship didn't hurt as much as theirs do."

"Why not?"

"Because…" Quinn shifted her weight slightly, unsure how to continue. "I hated seeing you with Sam because I missed him and I felt like you had betrayed me. So I was jealous but that was it."

Santana squinted unable to understand Quinn's point.

"Basically I knew you two didn't love each other. As much as it hurt seeing the two of you together, I knew you weren't going to last. Sam was only with you because of the sex and to get back at me. And you were only in it because of…"

"Yeah yeah, I had my reasons," Santana finished not wanting to talk about her problems with Brittany back then.

"Exactly. You didn't love each other so in some way I knew I still had a shot." Quinn sighed. "But now, when I see Mercedes with him, I'm not so sure anymore. I see them holding hands, whispering sweet nothing to each other, caressing each other… but in a non-sexual way. Simply in a loving way."

Santana scooted over next to her friend and put an arm around her.

"I know he's not in it for the sex, 'cause Mercedes isn't easy. And he doesn't even look at me anymore. He only looks at her. He's done with me, Santana." Quinn looked her friend in the eyes as the tears began falling out of her own.

"But you're not done with him."

"Yes, I am. I've cheated enough in my life; I'm not going to break up any more relationships. Not my own nor anybody else's. Especially not Mercedes'."

"Do you still love him?"

"No. I don't know. I don't think so."

"Gosh, Quinn. You're a mess." Santana stroked her cheek, wiping away her tears. "You know what? Now I'm going to put a little lip gloss on you..." She pulled out a rose colored tube from her purse and applied a bit of the sticky substance to Quinn's lips with her index finger. "…and make your cheeks a little rosy…" she playfully pinched Quinn's cheeks making the blonde girl giggle a bit. "…and then I'm going to tighten up your pony, like you always told me to do when we were cheerleaders." Santana put her arms on Quinn's shoulders and was just about to push the ribbon upwards, when she paused before pulling the ribbon away. "No, you know what, we are just going to let it hang loose. Shake your head a bit, so it falls more naturally,"

Quinn did as ordered and then smiled at Santana.

"There we go," she said. "There's my little man eater."

They hugged and Santana stood up. "Now if you'll only stop obsessing over Samcedes, you'll notice there are plenty of cute guys out there just waiting to be consumed." And with that, the Latina walked away.

Quinn's smile faded somewhat. _Samcedes? Oh god, they already have a name. They already have a name. _She pulled out her baby pink notebook. _Santana is right. I need to stop thinking about them. If they broke up tomorrow, would I even want to get back with Sam? Even more important, could I do that to Mercedes? God no. So just stop. Stop obsessing. _

She flipped through her notebook until she found a clean page. _I'm Quinn Fabray and I will not let this get me down. I've been through a teenage pregnancy god damn it, I think I can handle a stupid break-up._ And thus she began to write: _I don't care about Samcedes. I don't care about Samcedes. I don't care about Samcedes. I don't care about Samcedes. I don't care about Samcedes. _

She had filled up approximately half a page when the bell rang and more students started to appear in the school yard. Quinn looked up just in time to see Sam exit the school building – alone. _Huh, this is the first time I've seen him on his own since we started _Quinn thought.

As Sam looked around, his eyes caught his ex-girlfriend sitting alone at a table right in the middle. She was wearing a light grey dress and the wind was playing with her golden hair. And she was looking right at him. He suddenly felt the urge to talk with her.

For a moment it actually looked like Sam was heading towards her. Quinn held her breath, wondering if she should wave at him or just do something. But before she could do anything, Mercedes had walked up to him from behind.

Sam immediately turned around and embraced his girlfriend, eagerly pushing a kiss against her forehead to forget what he had just felt looking at Quinn. _What were you planning on saying to her, dude? 'I'm Archie, but I don't know if you're my Betty or my Veronica'? Let it go, man, _Sam thought while hoping Mercedes hadn't noticed what he'd been looking at before she came.

Quinn quickly dropped her gaze downwards when she saw them kiss. She had decided not to curl her hair this morning, as it looked longer in its natural straight condition. Though now she regretted bitterly as _it's so much easier to hide behind curls. I like having straight hair, but it's completely useless when you can't stop crying and your ex-boyfriend is making out with his current girlfriend a few yards away. _

With that she continued her writing: _I really don't care about Samcedes._ _I really don't care about Samcedes._ _I really don't care about Samcedes._ _I really don't care about Samcedes._ _I really don't care about Samcedes. I really don't care a-  
><em>

"Bonjour Quinn," a friendly voice said behind her.

She turned around and saw Augustin, the exchange student, standing behind her. She let out a small grin. "Bonjour Augustin. Comment ςa-va?"_ ["Hello Augustin. How's it going?"]_

"Ça-va bien, merci. Et vous?" _["It's going fine, thanks. And you?"]_

"Très bien, merci."_ ["Very good, thanks."]_

"Vraiment? You look… how you say… triste." _["Really? You look... sad"]_

"O-oh." Quinn stuttered, embarrassed that he could see it. "It's nothing, I'm fine." She tried to put on a genuine smile, but feared it wasn't good enough.

"Pas de mes affaires," the French boy smiled and sat down next to her. _["Not my business,"]_

Quinn immediately slammed her notepad closed, but that only drew his attention towards the pink book.

"Qu'es-ce que c'est?"_ ["What's this?"]_

"Un bloc-notes – a notepad."

"Ouai, je sais," Augustin replied while laughing. "Qu'es-ce que ςa?" he said, pointing to a couple of lines written with a blue pen at the cover of her notebook._ ["Yeah, I know. What's that?"]_

"Oh that. Song lyrics, uh, paroles de chanson."

"Hm," he said turning the notepad slightly so that he could read them. "'_They tell so sincerely what no other words tell half so clearly._' I don't understand."

"Je ne peux pas le traduire. Il s'agit d'amour; de dire 'je t'aime'. C'est un chanson de Nat King Cole. Do you know him?"_ ["I can't translate it. It's about love; about saying 'I love you'. It's a song by Nat King Cole. Do you know him?"]_

Augustin shook his head.

"Un artiste très célèbre américain. Je l'ai écrit il y a longtemps." She couldn't exactly remember when she had written it down, she just knew it was a long time ago. _["A very famous American artist. I wrote it down a long time ago."]_

"Quinn," he said seriously. "I will thank you for help me. I am happy for it." He said slowly.

_He must have been practicing this_, she thought.

"My parents, they are old. Alors, they see TV all days. They no speak to me."

Quinn couldn't help but smile a little and so did Augustin, as he continued: "So I need help. Un tuteur. Pouvez-vous m'aider à nouveau?"_ ["A tutor. Can you help me again?"]_

"You want me to be your tutor?"

"Oui, c'est ca." _["Yes, that's it."]_

"I don't know, Augustin." _A blonde American teenager spending her afternoons tutoring an enchanting French boy with a heavy accent and a mysterious look to his eyes? Oh god, this is more of a cliché than me and Finn dating in sophomore year_, she thought. But then she looked into his eyes and she saw something familiar. He looked lost. Lost and lonely. She recognized that look as she had seen it so many times looking at her own reflection in the mirror.

Suddenly she felt herself nodding. "Okay then."

"Vraiment?" _["Really?"]_

"I-I guess. Sure, I'll be your tutor."

"Merveilleuse!" He exclaimed. "Mecredi?"_ ["Great! Wednesday?"]_

"Wednesday," she corrected him. "And yes."

He smiled at her and kissed her cheek before standing up and walking away.

She looked down at her notebook and suddenly she remembered when she had written the song lyrics down. It had been the day Sam had given her the promise ring. She had considered telling him that she thought she loved him back, but she never got to it. Sighing heavily Quinn picked up her things and went inside the school.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>First of all I'd like to thank you all for your extremely kind reviews! The amount of reviews for the last chapter was definitely far beyond expectations, I truly appreciate it! Also I'm very pleased with you welcoming Augustin (who we will get to know better eventually) and bearing over with my French. Sorry it's been a while since I last updated, but I've been on vacation far away from my beloved laptop. When I came home this morning I was welcomed by all your wonderful reviews (seriously, I'm not exaggerating, you guys are making me ecstatic!) and the news that Chord Overstreet is coming back - sensing some (if not all) of your dear readers are Fabrevans-shippers, you must be very excited. I know I am! Do you think that Sam and Quinn will start dating again or do you think he's returning as Mercedes' friend or a rival to Blaine or... what do you think will happen?<br>The 7th chapter will appear before Sunday night, I promise thou. 'Till then, my friends, 'till then!


	7. Perfect for Jazz

**Chapter 7: Perfect for Jazz  
><strong>**Chapter song: "You're the cream in my coffee" – Nat King Cole  
>Time: August<strong>

* * *

><p>Quinn was leaning up against her car, fidgeting with her skirt, trying to wiggle it down a little so it wouldn't show so much of her thighs.<p>

_I probably should have worn something a bit more appropriate for this,_ she thought._ Don't want to give him any ideas; I'm just helping him with his English. _

Soon after, she saw the French boy approaching her from the other end of the school parking lot. When their eyes met he ran up to her.

"Ah, vous l'avez rappelé." Augustin said happily._ ["Ah, you remembered"]_

"Bien sûr," she replied, opened the door, and got in._ ["Of course,"]_

He jumped over to the other side of the car and hopped in.

It was the day of their first tutor lesson and unsure what to expect from Augustin, she felt a little nervous. Hesitantly she stuck the key in the ignition and down the road they went.

"So, how go it?" He looked at her expectantly.

A small smile formed on her lips. "How goes it. Or rather, 'how is it going'. Try that,"

"Bon, how is it going?"

"Good, thank you."

A little while later, they pulled up in front of her house and got out of the car.

As they entered, Augustin exclaimed "Quelle maison!" _["What a house!"]_

"Merci. It was my mother who furnished it," the blonde answered slowly.

He nodded, but Quinn wasn't sure that he understood.

"Where is your parents?" he asked as they walked up the stairs towards her room.

"My mother is at work. She won't be home until later tonight. She works a lot." _Oh god, that totally sounded like I was encouraging him to make a move on me… letting him know that we aren't going to be disturbed for hours. Nice one, Quinn, _she thought, but luckily it didn't seem like Augustin had been paying attention the last part of her comment.

"And… father?" he asked studying a line of old pictures of Quinn and her sister hanging on the wall in the hallway.

"Uh, long story," she answered, not really interested in telling him all about her sophomore year… about Beth. _I know the guys tend to gossip quite a lot in the locker room, s_he thought. _I wonder if he's heard anything about me having a baby, _and as if per cue, Augustin immediately said:

"Quel joli bébé!"_ ["What a beautiful baby!"]_

Quinn hastily looked up feeling like someone had just punched her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her. Then she realized it wasn't Beth he was talking about. It was her.

Augustin was pointing to a photo picturing herself as a one-year-old.

"C'est toi, non?" He asked with a toothy grin. _["It's you, right?"]_

"Oui, c'est moi," Quinn exhaled thinking _I need to stop being so tense_._ ["Yes, that's me,"]_

"Yes. I can see. It is… I don't know… C'est tes yeux - tes yeux sont les mêmes que lors. Ils sont uniques - les plus beaux yeux que j'ai jamais vu." _["It's your eyes - your eyes still look the same. They are unique - the prettiest eyes I've ever seen."]_

He turned around and looked at her. He was still smiling.

Quinn looked him in the eyes for a moment, slightly taken aback by what he had just said. Then she looked down as she felt her cheeks getting warmer. "Th-thank you."

"De rien." They were silent for yet another moment, Quinn not willing to look up and Augustin amused by her embarrassment. "Alors, où est ton chambre?"_ ["You're welcome. So, where's your room?"]_

"Ici," she said while passing him. She took a few steps further down the hall before turning to the left, entering her own room. _["Here,"]_

Quinn threw off her ballet flats in the corner and sat on her bed letting out a heavy sigh, already tired because of her anxious state of mind.

Augustin followed her and sat down on her chaise longue pointing to the porcelain figure on the coffee table next to him.

"La vierge?" _["The virgin?"]_

"Virgin Mary," Quinn corrected him. _Wonder if he gets annoyed when I do that._

"Yes. Religieuse?" _["Religious?"]_

"Aha."

"Beaucoup?"_ ["Very?"]_

"Well. I _was_, mais maintenant…" Quinn started hesitantly_ ["Well. I _was_, but now..."]_

"Yes?"

"Maintenant, I'm not a very good Christian. I'm kind of a bad Christian."

She thought about all her actions the past two years and she felt the little cross, hanging around her neck, burning into her chest.

"Pourquoi?" Augustin asked curiously._ ["Why?"]_

Quinn looked at him while frowning a bit. She had no idea how much he knew about her, but regardless she wasn't in the mood to discuss her past. "Never mind."

"D'accord," he said, wobbling his head. "Donc, tu es un mauvais chrétien. M'en dire plus sur toi-même." _["All right. So, you're a bad Christian. Tell me more about yourself."]_

"Non, tu es la personne, qui a besoin d'apprendre la langue. Donc, m'en dire plus sur toi-même. Et pas plus français!" She said raising one eyebrow. _["No, you're the one who needs to learn the language. So, tell me more about yourself. And no more French!"]_

"Bon, ce qui tu veux savoir?" _["Fine, what do you want to know?"]_

"I said no more French!" Quinn said playing the strict school teacher with her finger waving at him, though she couldn't help but smile.

"Okay okay. What you like to know?" Augustin laughed.

"I want to know why you take the school bus every morning. And why I had to drive you here today"

Augustin scrunched up his face, obviously wondering how to express himself. "I take the school bus because… I not drive."

"You don't drive? Because you don't like to or because you can't?"

"I can't. In France only grand people drive."

"Grand people as in grown ups?"

"People who have… plus dix-huit."

"Oh, I see. Only people who are above the age of 18 are allowed to drive."

"Yes! Exactement."

"You mean 'exactly'"

"Yes yes, exactly."

"But aren't you 18?"

"Yes - now. In France I am 17. Then I go here and now 18."

"I see."

"But I take a driver's license now. Un temporaires."

"A temporary driver's license? That's nice. When do you get it?"

"Novembre."

"November. So you'll be able to drive yourself to school then."

"Maybe. If father say okay." He chuckled.

"You don't think your host dad is going to let you borrow his car?"

"No, I don't think that. He is old,"

"How old?"

He shrugged and scratched his neck.

_Is it their actual age or the English word for that number that is troubling him?_ "Well, very old?"

"Yes! I think mes parents americaine are very old. And they don't know French, pas du tout."

"So it's difficult for you to communicate with them?"

"Yes. Very. But they are very sweet. They can't say my name, alors they say 'Gus'."

"They call you Gus?"

He nodded and looked down at his red all stars.

"Gus. I like that," Quinn said.

"Me also."

They were silent for a moment, merely looking at each other.

He was the first to break the silence. "I, uh, I examine Nat King Cole in google," he said, sounding slightly shy.

"You google'd Nat King Cole?" Quinn asked surprised. She remembered he had commented on the song lyrics she had written on her notebook.

"Yes. He is very old, no?"

Quinn chuckled. "Yes, but not like your parents, Gus. He's dead now. His music is very old though, that you can say."

"Exactem-, I mean, exactly. His music is jazz. You like jazz?"

"Yeah, I do." Quinn replied and now it was her turn to be shy. "I don't know, I kinda like listening to it, it makes me calm, you know? Modern music is fine for dancing at parties and stuff. But when I'm by myself I prefer listening to the old classics. Does that sound weird?"

"Quinn, please. I understand; I'm French!"

They both laughed and Quinn felt how she slowly began to relax.

"I want to hear," Gus said suddenly

"You want to hear some of his music?"

"Yes… please." He gave her a big smile and giggling she got up and plugged her ipod in her docking-station. She found a song and hit play.

After a couple of seconds and a few bass chords, the dreamy voice of Nat King Cole flowed out through the speakers.

_You're the cream in my coffee,  
>You're the salt in my stew…<em>

"Really? A song around coffee?" Gus laughed.

"No," Quinn grimaced. "It's a song about love and about needing each other."

"Oh," he said.

Quinn was still standing by the docking station when Gus got up and slowly walked towards her.

"Voulez-vous m'accorder cette danse?" He asked while nobly offering her his hand. _["May I have this dance?"]_

Quinn wasn't sure if it was because of the music, her loneliness or his big brown eyes, but she suddenly saw herself putting her hand in his somewhat larger hand and the next thing she knew, he was grabbing her waist (though gently) and twirling her around.

_Most men tell love tails,  
>And each phrase dovetails<em>

"Hm, I like this song," he said, looking down at the small blonde in his arms. Then he noticed her anxious expression.

"Relaxez," he said while gently rubbing circles into her back with his hand. "Nous sommes juste danser." _["Relax. We're just dancing."]_

He then felt her unstiffen a bit, yet he wasn't quite satisfied.

"Chanter pour moi," _["Sing for me,"]_

"W-what?" Quinn stuttered finally looking up at him.

"Chanter pour moi," he repeated. "Sing."

Already confused by the situation, she saw no point in arguing with the stranger (s_hould I still consider him a stranger?_ She mused. _Do I still consider him a stranger?_), so she parted her lips slightly and quietly began chanting along with her favorite jazz musician.

"You're the captain and crew  
>You'll always be my necessity<br>Like a restaurant with a recipe  
>You're the lace in my shoe<br>I'd be lost without you."

Along with the last notes of the song, he had spun her around and she was now standing with her back against him, his arms firmly wrapped around her.

"Magnifique," he whispered kissing her cheek.

Quinn licked her lips and nonplussed, she took a step away from him and then turned to face him.

"Beautiful. Very," he said calmly not affected by the scared look upon her face. "You can sing this in glee club, yes?"

Quinn took a deep breath when she realized that he wasn't going to jump on her. _Is he hitting on me or is it all in my head?_ She wondered.

"I-in glee club? You want me to sing this in front of the others?" She hastily shook her head. "I-I don't think so."

"Mais pourquoi pas! Tu as la voix d'un ange." _["But why not! You have the voice of an angel."]_

"Thanks Gus, that was a sweet compliment, but my voice is too nasal for solos."

"Pas du tout," he almost yelled taking a step towards her. He laid his hands on her shoulders and bent down a bit so he could look into her eyes.

"Quinn, you have a beautiful voice. It is perfect for jazz. Croyez-moi!" _["Not at all (...) believe me!"]_

She studied the French boy's eyes while considering his suggestion. She wasn't really ready to stand up in front of everybody else (everybody else being Samcedes) and sing her heart out. She knew that jazz was the best genre for her voice, but she just felt so insecure.

Then she saw something in Gus' eyes. A look she hadn't seen in a long time anywhere else: it was look of sheer friendliness and… what? Hope? Did he actually look hopeful? She wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but she knew that she couldn't tell him 'no' now.

"Well, I'll think about it," she finally sighed, closing her eyes.

He pulled her in for a tight hug and after a little while she wrapped her arms around him too.

When they parted Quinn once again felt awkward, so she quietly told him that he probably should be heading home now, as it was getting late.

"Bien sûr," he said picking up his bag. "But I need a chauffeur."

Gus lived relatively close to Quinn as they only drove for about 20 minutes before he told her to pull over. They were parked in front of a line of small row houses in different colours.

"This seems like a nice neighbourhood," she said before he got out of the car.

"You have not be here?"

"No, I've never been here before. Everything else - school, the mall, church, the park - is in the other direction, so I have never driven this way."

"Good bye, Quinn," he said pecking her on her cheek.

"Bye Gus."

He opened the car door and got out, but just before closing it again, he leaned down and tilted his head, saying "Don't be sad because your voice is, uh, nasal. It is what make you very good in French."

Once again, Quinn was surprised by his attentive manor, so she said nothing. Instead she just smiled at him.

Gus closed the car door and went into his house.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>As promised, the seventh chapter. I know this was a bit too Gus-centric, but I felt that I needed to include a lot of details; thus the length of this chapter. In the next chapter(s) there'll be more interaction between the main glee-characters and their observations on Gus (on Gus? Of Gus? At Gus? What preposition does one use here?) Ah, sorry. It's late in my country and I'm afraid my English speaking skills are slowly diffusing out of my head. I'm pretty sure there are quite a few grammatical errors in this chapter. I apologize. So, this isn't the best chapter, but I do hope you enjoyed it anyhow. Have a nice weekend everyone and thank you for your lovely reviews on the previous chapter. Bisous.<p> 


	8. The Eyes of Jessica Rabbit

**Chapter 8: The Eyes of Jessica Rabbit  
><strong>**Chapter song: "You don't have to be a baby to cry" – The Caravelles  
><strong>**Time: September**

* * *

><p>It was Friday night and Kurt had returned from Michigan earlier that day. All the glee girls had been invited over to a little get-together at his house, partly to catch up and partly to see all his new clothes. He had posted 'I swear Michi is the new Milan' on facebook two weeks earlier, so all the girls knew what to expect.<p>

Quinn arrived a little late so when she knocked on the front door, she was already wearing her 'I'm sorry'-face. Although, it wasn't any of the glee clubbers who opened the door, it was Finn's mother.

_Oh well_, Quinn figured _I probably owe her this face more than anyone. _Finn's mother had never forgiven her for lying about Finn being the father of Beth for nearly two years ago.

"Oh, Quinn. It's you," Mrs. Hummel said trying to cover up her disapproval of the blonde girl.

"Yeah… hi," Quinn murmured casting her eyes downward.

Luckily Finn came down the stairs at that very moment.

"Hey Quinn," he said, coming to the front door. He gave her a small hug and stepped aside ignoring, his mother's displeased gaze. "Come on in, they're all downstairs."

He took her jacket and put it on hanger and then he put a hand on her back leading her towards the door to the basement. Quinn could still feel his mother's glance on her back, so she was glad that Finn had taken over the situation.

_My knight in shining armor_, she mused and immediately pictured Sam in a tin outfit. _I've got to stop doing that_.

Finn opened the basement door for her and she descended a few steps before turning around.

"You're not coming?" she asked.

"Nah, too much estrogen down there." Finn replied. "I'm going over to Mike's in half an hour or so. Have fun." He smiled and closed the door behind her.

Quinn walked all the way down and was immediately met by a squealing Kurt, who jumped up from his seat at the floor and ran into her arms.

"Quiiiiiinn, I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too, Kurt. Welcome home," she laughed, noticing how he smelled like daisies on a summer day. _That can't possibly be from an aftershave… wait, does he even shave?  
><em>

"We've been waiting for you," Tina said. "But now that you're here, we should get the show started."

"The show?" Quinn asked as she took a seat next to Brittany and Rachel.

The girls were sitting around a Japanese floor table on little wintergreen mats.

"Yeah, the fashion show. Kurt is going to show us all his new clothes from Michigan," Anna replied. She was sitting across from Quinn, and Mercedes was seated next to her.

Quinn thanked Anna and gave Mercedes a quick smile before turning her head towards the beverages on the short table.

"You want a wine cooler?" Brittany asked pointing to the yellow bottles.

"Uh, no thanks Brit," Quinn said, remembering what had happened the last time she had had a wine cooler, two years ago. Or rather what had happened nine months later. "I think I'll just have a vodka cruiser."

Rachel handed her a pink bottle.

"How did you guys even get all this?"

"Just because I'm not doing Puck anymore doesn't mean I can't still get him to do things for me," Santana snickered.

A few minutes later Kurt began his show. He had bought a ton of trousers, vests, shirts and shoes and even a fitted sweater with shining simili stones that was down to his knees. He loudly objected when some of the girls yelled that it was a dress.

They laughed a lot and Quinn finished her drink as Kurt put on a silky bathrobe and sat down with the girls saying "Just let me know if we have a visible nads issue" as he tried to shift his legs gracefully, so he wouldn't be flashing the others.

They all small talked for some time but eventually the newest member of the glee club became the main topic.

"So what's he like?" Kurt asked, sipping on a wine cooler.

"Don't know," Tina said. "He doesn't really speak English, so we-"

"He's actually kind of… nice," Quinn interrupted her absentmindedly. All eyes went to her.

"You've been talking more to him?" Anna asked curiously.

"W-well, yeah. I've been tutoring him for the last week." Quinn said suddenly aware that everybody was solely paying attention to her.

Santana laughed. "Tutoring? So that's what you kids call it now a days."

"Why haven't you told me?" Rachel asked sounding a tad hurt.

"I didn't really figure it was a big deal. And I knew there's was going to be gossiped a lot as soon as you guys found out. Or well as soon as Santana found."

"Hey!" The before mentioned yelled.

"Sorry, it's the alcohol talking" Quinn shrugged, perfectly aware that she wasn't the least bit drunk.

"So how many times have you tutored him?" Mercedes asked.

_Huh, I'd almost forgotten she was here, _Quinn thought. _She's been so quiet. I guess the tenseness between us is getting to her as well. _"Just one time, but those hours were intense enough."

"Hours?" Anna roared.

"Intense?" Rachel bellowed.

"Oh honey, do tell!" Kurt said, handing Quinn another vodka cruiser, a blue one this time.

"Well," Quinn began moistening her lips with her tongue. "It was kind of weird between us the entire time. Or maybe not weird, but there was definitely a lot of tension… I think."

"Did you have sex him?" Santana giggled.

"No, San, of course not." Quinn hissed. "Although I did think he wanted to at one point."

The host and the rest of the guests all pricked up their ears.

"It was just that… I couldn't figure out if he was trying to get in my pants or if he was trying to be my girlfriend. It was like he was sending me these mixed signals."

"Didn't he kiss your cheek during Glee rehearsals last week?"

"Yeah, he did. And he has pecked my cheek numerous times since then, but then again he is French."

They all giggled.

"When we made our appointment and as we were driving to my house, he was like all business as if it meant nothing. But then he kept on speaking French. And I know he has some trouble speaking English, but still you'd think you'd try a little harder if you were trying to learn a new language."

"I don't try that hard in Spanish class," Brittany said. "I don't even know who my teacher is." Everybody looked at the other blonde for a moment, before they looked at back at the first one.

"Then we got home to my house and he found this old baby picture of me and he give me a really nice compliment about my eyes."

"So? You always get complimented on your eyes." Rachel muttered sounding slightly jealous.

_If only she could see her own big chocolate brown orbs right now, _Quinn thought.

"It's inevitable" Kurt said, pursing his lips. "It's because of the contradiction in your face: you have really innocent, almost childish features... and then you have the eyes of Jessica Rabbit." He finished in a matter of fact tone.

Quinn threw a pillow after him while everybody else was laughing.

At that very moment Finn came down the stairs with a bowl of cucumber bites on a tray.

"I promised mom I'd bring you some snacks before I left," he said with a goofy grin upon his face, but nobody paid any attention to him. They were all faced towards Quinn once again.

"I don't know. He just said my eyes were unique, but it did something to me."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure… maybe because he said it in a foreign language."

They all giggled and Finn suddenly felt very awkward. He handed Rachel the tray, as the Japanese table was too far for him to bend down. He then pecked his girlfriend on her forehead and hurried towards the stairs.

"I've always fantasized about being with a European," Kurt hummed. "So tell me, is he a good kisser?"

Finn practically ran up the stairs and quickly shut the door close.

"It wasn't like that, we didn't even kiss." Quinn said, licking her lips. They tasted like blueberry from the vodka cruiser, and she thought of Sam for a moment, but then realized that somebody had asked her question. That somebody happened to be Sam's girlfriend.

"Huh?" Quinn said, feeling a little guilty.

"What did you mean with intense, if you didn't kiss?" Mercedes asked again.

Quinn told them about the dancing, the singing and the hugging, though she didn't mention his suggestion for her to sing in glee club. She still needed to think about that.

"Sorry Quinn, but it does sound like he was trying to get with you." Rachel said while padding Quinn's arm.

"I thought so too every second minute of our session, but then I figured if it was Kurt who said those things to me or held me that way, I wouldn't suspect a thing. Hell, I'd probably do even dirtier things with Kurt without feeling the least guilty."

"Well, it looks like we need to find out whether Monsieur Exchange Student is gay or not. And lucky for all of you damsels, you have the greatest expert on that particular area sitting at the end of this very table."

"Please be discrete!" Quinn said angstly.

"No worries, Quinnie, I'll only need to observe him for a few minutes to make my mind up. I'll know what he is by the end of next glee session." He said proudly.

"Oh yeah, the same expertise you showed the last time a new boy joined glee," Tina laughed.

_Oh god no, _Quinn thought slowly closing her eyes.

"You immediately decided that Sam most definitely was gay, and then the guy falls head over heels for _the_ most feminine girl of the entire club." Tina was laughing out loudly now, pointing at Quinn. It took a moment before she realized that no one was laughing with her.

Quinn opened her eyes and glanced furtively at Mercedes, who was looking down at her hands breathing heavily. The entire basement was silent as the grave except for the lounge music Kurt had put on earlier.

Rachel was the first to break the silence, putting on the role of team leader. "You better prepare yourself Quinn: if he is gay, then Kurt is going to take over the tutor sessions faster than you can say your own last name."

Quinn shot her a thankful look, and brushed the brunette's hand underneath the table.

"Oh god no," Kurt exclaimed. "I wouldn't want Blaine to think I was fooling around with some French guy just because I changed back to McKinley."

"For the last time, we are not fooling around!" Quinn bellowed, but no one cared.

"I'll tell you what," Santana smirked. "I'll put on a really low cut dress and then I'm going to rub my wonder twins against him at the next glee club get-together. If he, you know, responds, we'll have the answer."

"Oh please Santana, even I would 'respond' if you rubbed those milk churns against my body." Kurt said.

Quinn wrinkled her nose at the turn of the conversation and finished her blue drink. Soon they were all lying on the floor, their stomachs aching from laughter.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>So, this was a lot of fun to write! Maybe it was the drinking, maybe it was the fashion or maybe it was because I got to use the word 'nads', hæhæ. I hope you don't find it too confusing because of the many characters being present. I tried to write it as clearly as possible. Thank you for your lovely reviews on the previous chapter. I wasn't too happy about it, but you guys are very kind and I'm very grateful for your encouraging words! TGIF and have a very good weekend.<p> 


	9. The Boys' Locker Room

**Chapter 9: The Boys' Locker Room  
><strong>**Chapter song: "Stupid Cupid" – Connie Francis  
>Time: September<strong>

* * *

><p>AN: The eighth chapter took place on a Friday and this is supposed to take place the following week. Never mind the fact that these two chapters were uploaded on the same day. Andernfalls, viel Spaß!<p>

* * *

><p><em>Oh god, if I could only stand in here forever<em>, Sam thought with his eyes closed as the warm water ran down his shoulder, stomach, thighs and hit his feet. He was surrounded by steam standing in the boys' locker room, the only one still showering.

_Wonder what would happen if I just stayed here… who would be the first to notice?_ Then he thought of his little sister and how she would react if she found out that her oldest brother had moved into a shower cabin. _She'd cry like a baby_, he smiled to himself and turned off the water. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, dried himself up a bit and then he approached the other boys who were dressing in between the lockers.

"So is he gay or what?" Puck asked pulling up his boxers.

"He's got to be," Mike said. "He's French."

They both chuckled.

Finn shook his head. "I don't know, man. All the girls just seemed pretty, like, into him I guess."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, suddenly curious, as he discovered who they were talking about.

"Well, I didn't really hear much of their conversation, but apparently Quinn's been seeing him."

"What, outside of school?" Sam asked a bit aggressively.

"Uh, don't know dude." Finn regarded Sam, a little surprised by his reaction. "She was just telling the other girls and Kurt about him and they all looked pretty swallowed up by what she was saying."

"Huh…" Puck started, not really interested in Quinn and the new boy. "So I was thinking, at the next game right, why don't we-"

"What was she telling them?" Sam interrupted Puck in a strict tone.

Finn just shrugged and buttoned his shirt. "I don't know… stuff…"

"What stuff?" Sam snarled

"Relax, man. I was only down there for like two seconds. I think Quinn said something about him complimenting her… like her eyes or something. Yeah, he'd said something nice about her eyes and it did something to her because it was in a foreign language or some shit like that. And then they all squealed."

Sam looked hurt and snorted loudly.

"What's your problem dude?" Puck asked.

"_I_ said something nice about her eyes in a foreign language." Sam cast his eyes downward, fidgeting with his belt buckle.

"What other language?" Finn asked. "Your Spanish is terrible…"

Sam sighed. "In Na'vi, okay, I said she had beautiful eyes in Na'vi. And it was like our first real moment, you know?"

"Na'vi?" Mike asked. "Seriously? Sorry bro, but Na'vi really can't compete with French… it's like the language of looooove."

Finn, Puck and Mike all laughed, but Sam remained serious.

"What else did she say?" he asked Finn.

"Nothing really. I left the basement when Kurt asked her if he was a good kisser."

"Oh man, they've kissed already?" Sam asked seemingly disgusted. "What the hell, she's only known him for like two weeks or something!"

"So what, you tried to kiss her at your first rehearsal!" Finn said, remembering how he and Rachel had struggled to get the two blondes to work together again after Sam had made a move on Quinn in the astronomy class room. "And why do you even care?"

"I don't," Sam hissed and grabbed his bag, quickly tramping out of the locker room.

Finn gathered his things and went after him.

When he got out of the locker room, Rachel was standing beside the door looking a bit shocked.

"Hey, have you seen Sam?" Finn asked looking down the hall.

"Uh, yeah, he just stormed pass me almost knocking me over. His cheeks were all red, and I don't even think he noticed me… what was that all about?"

"I don't know," Finn said as they began walking towards his locker. "We were just talking about that exchange student, and he just freaked out."

"Why? Has he even talked to him?"

"Nah, don't think so. But I kind of told him what I heard Quinn say at Kurt's party last Friday and then he went all crazy."

"Finn, that was probably a bad idea. Quinn and Mercedes aren't even talking yet because Quinn is still so… I don't know, jealous or miserable or lonely or whatever. I can imagine Sam is somewhat affected by their break up too."

"Yeah, I know. I just figured since he's with Mercedes and all, it wouldn't be that big a deal to him."

"Still though, I remember how horrible I felt seeing you and Quinn back together again last year. Even though we were broken up, I still didn't want to see you with anybody else. It hurt so badly."

Finn stopped at his locker and saw the pain in his girlfriend's face. Even though it was a new school year, the events of junior year still weren't that far away.

He took her hands and bent down, meeting her lips with his own.

"I only want to be with you. You know that." He whispered before gently pushing his tongue into her mouth.

After a little while, he pulled away, glad to see the smile on her face, even if it was just a small one.

"I know that," she said squeezing his hands. "Will you follow me to my car?"

"Sure."

They exited the school arm in arm.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<br>**I just got this idea like half an hour ago and I felt a sudden need to post it. It was a bit rushed, but I hope you enjoyed it anyhow! Please leave a review, they really boost my ego in the nicest possible way. And for the second time today, have a very nice weekend :-)  
>OH yeah! Regarding the rating of this story; I live in country where censorship isn't a familiar concept. Therefore I'm a bit uncertain as to how to rate this story. I read the rules of rating on this page and ended up using a T. Please inform me, if you think this isn't the proper rating. I mean to offend or harm no one, I'm simply just not used to censorship. Thank you!<p> 


	10. You're Just in Love

**Chapter 10: You're Just in Love  
><strong>**Chapter song: "You're the cream in my coffee" – Nat King Cole & "You're Just in Love" – Ethel Merman & Donald O'Connor  
>Time: September<strong>

* * *

><p>Quinn stepped into the choir room and felt the familiar wave of nervousness wash in over her. Without even realizing it, she silently prayed for strength and grabbed the cross that was supposed to rest upon her chest, but instead she felt a quite different shape. Then she remembered that she was wearing her Eiffel tower necklace (which she bought in Paris) today. She awkwardly let her hand fall down and went further into the room. She sat down on the front row, not interested in passing Samcedes who were sitting on the second row. She then felt a hand gently tugging at her shoulder.<p>

"Gus," she said a little surprised. "I didn't see you there."

He sat down next to her. "I know, you are busy not look at anything," he grinned

Quinn wasn't exactly sure what he meant, but she had a feeling that he knew more about her than she thought. She glanced towards her blonde ex-boyfriend, who seemed pretty swallowed up by making his girlfriend giggle.

"So, you will be do it?"

"Huh?" Quinn asked confusedly.

"You will be do it, yes? Sing?"

"Oh… I don't know yet."

"Alors, what is that?" He pointed to the music sheet in her hand.

"Well," she chuckled, realizing she was showing off some rather odd behaviour. "I think I'm going to do it, but only if I'm able to calm down a bit. I'm really nervous right now, and my singing skills tend to disappear whenever I'm nervous."

"I have hear you sing;" he leaned into her and whispered "You will be fine."

Quinn smiled and felt herself beginning to unstiffen.

_He has that effect on me, _she mused. _He makes me calm.  
><em>

Mr. Schue stepped into the class room and began talking about… something. Quinn wasn't paying attention at all, as she was trying to take deep breaths to gather enough courage.

After a little while, she felt Gus' breath on her neck, as he quietly whispered into her ear: "Maintenant." _["Now.]_

She noticed Mr. Schue had stopped talking, so she stood up and asked if she could perform a song she had been practicing. She wasn't exactly sure if she had done it because she felt secure enough or if it was because of Gus' encouragement. Maybe both. Whatever it was, she was now standing in front of the entire class. She had handed Brad the music sheet and she cleared her throat.

"Uh, this is a somewhat unconventional song, but I like it… and I hope you will too," she said. _God, I've completely lost my HBIC-attitude. And I'm not really sure I like it, _she thought, feeling somewhat exposed in front of the group.

She heard the familiar chords of the song she'd chosen. She closed her eyes and opened her mouth, and then the words just started flowing out.

_"You're the cream in my coffee_  
><em>You're the salt in my stew<em>  
><em>You'll always be my necessity<em>  
><em>I'd be lost without you<em>

_You're the starch in my collar_  
><em>You're the lace in my shoe<em>  
><em>You'll always be my necessity<em>  
><em>I'd be lost without you"<em>

She opened her eyes, but kept gazing at the floor to avoid the looks of her fellow glee clubbers. She pulled her blue cardigan a little tighter around her.

_"Most men tell love tales_  
><em>And each phrase dovetails<em>  
><em>You've heard each known way<em>  
><em>This way is my own way<em>

_You're the sail of my love boat_  
><em>You're the captain and crew<em>  
><em>You will always be my necessity<em>  
><em>I'd be lost without you"<em>

Then the instrumental break came, and Quinn slowly looked up at her class mates. The first person she saw was Mercedes, who was sitting right in the middle of everything. She was smiling big and gave Quinn a thumbs up. _I've got to make up with that girl, _Quinn thought. _I miss her._

_"You give life savor_  
><em>Bring out its flavor<em>  
><em>So this is clear, dear<em>  
><em>You're my worcestershire, dear.<em>

_You're the sail of my love boat_  
><em>You're the captain and crew<em>  
><em>You'll always be my necessity<em>  
><em>Like a restaurant with a recipe<em>  
><em>You're the lace in my shoe<em>  
><em>I'd be lost without you"<em>

Quinn finished the song wiggling her hips a bit while smiling. She had actually enjoyed singing despite her uncomfortableness at the beginning.

The group clapped and Mr. Schue got up and approached Quinn, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Great job, Quinn. That was really good." He then faced the entire group, but kept a hand on her shoulder. "I really appreciate it when you guys do something that's outside the box. The more creative you get, the more practice you get – and the more experience we get before sectionals. So let's-"

"Oh my god, Quinn!" Santana exclaimed.

"What?" Quinn asked nervously.

"Your cross… where's your cross?"

Quinn instinctively reached up to her neck, and then she realized what the Latina meant. "O-oh, my cross… I-I…" she stuttered, not really sure what to say.

"Quel croix?" Gus asked confusedly. He was looking at Quinn, but she wasn't the one who answered him._ ["What cross?"]_

"Quinn always wears a cross around her neck. C'est sa marque de commerce." Kurt said, studying the exchange student._ ["It's her trademark."]_

"I can't believe you've taken it off," Santana bellowed indignantly.

"What's that you're wearing instead?" Rachel asked. She was squinting to get a better look at Quinn's new necklace.

_Why are they freaking out like this? _Quinn thought. _And why the hell did I choose today to wear this, knowing I'd be standing up here in front of everybody?  
><em>

Mr. Schue had taken a step away from her, and was now incredulously studying her neck. _Gee, this is just swell, s_he mused. _My so-called friends are exposing me to a third degree interrogation and it feels like my teacher is staring at my boobs. _

"I know why she not wear cross," Gus suddenly said while laughing

_Oh dear God, no.  
><em>

"It is because she is kind of a bad Christian!" He practically yelled while gesturing wildly, referring to their conversation at his first tutor lesson.

"Oh dear God." This time Quinn said it out loud as she blushed heavily. She dropped her face in her hand.

The next that happened surprised everyone in the choir room. There had been a deafening silence for a few seconds after Gus' remark when Brittany suddenly said: "Quinn's a bad Christian?". She then snorted a little, then she giggled a little, and before they knew it, she was laughing like a crazy person. It didn't take many a seconds before the entire glee club was dying with laughter; at Gus' statement, at Brittany's reaction, at everything. Even Quinn couldn't hold it in, so she had to hold on to the piano not to fall over from laughter. Had she not been laughing, she would have noticed that there was one person in the room who wasn't laughing: Sam.

_What the hell just happened? _He thought, looking round the room. _How is this funny? The Three Stooges are funny. This is just… it's not funny. _

He clenched his jaw and looked at Quinn. _I know what that is around her neck. That's a little Eiffel tower. Why is she all up in my face about this? We get it, Quinn. You're dating the French guy. Good for you. Or is it? I mean, he didn't even know that she always wears a cross. That's like the first thing you notice about her. Well, next after her eyes. And her lips. And her hair. And her smell. She always smells good. _

_Anyways he's already kissed her, yet he didn't know about her cross, what kind of a boyfriend is that? I guess I should just be happy that he wasn't looking at her boo… uh, that he wasn't looking at her neck. And did he just call her a bad Christian? What does that even mean? She's a really good Christian, I'd know, I dated her for six months_, he thought, remembering all the cold showers he was forced to take during those months.

_Sam, stop this. You're not going to this to Mercedes. Focus on her. Look how sweet she looks when she's laughing. _He smiled and put an arm around his girlfriend, who was still chuckling hysterically. _That's more like it._

A few minutes later, they were all still laughing, so Mr. Schue told them to take five. They all exited the room to get some water and fresh air, except Quinn who stayed at the piano. Some of the others padded her shoulder on their way out, still laughing.

Quinn could feel her French plait had loosened slightly, so she pulled her ribbon out and shook her head a little, making her hair fall down her shoulders, as the last students left the room.

"You coming?" Sam asked on his way out of the choir room.

Confused Quinn turned around and looked at him, and then she noticed where he was looking – or rather who he was looking at. Mercedes was stilling sitting on the second row.

"I'll think I'll just stay here," she said. "You can go, I'll see you in five."

Sam looked over at Quinn, who was replaiting her hair, trying to look at anything else but her ex-boyfriend and his girlfriend.

"M'kay. See you in a bit."

Quinn was still looking at the floor, when Mercedes sighed heavily.

"Quinn, we really need to talk. Please," she pleated.

Quinn closed her eyes and bit her lip. She knew Mercedes was right; this couldn't go on for much longer. Finally she looked up at the diva and nodded. "I know."

She went over to the chairs and sat down on the first row, looking up at her friend.

"I'm so sorry" they both said in unison.

Then they both kind of chuckled while exhaling.

"Look Quinn, I don't know what to say. I-I hate that I've done this to you."

"You haven't exactly done anything wrong."

Raising an eyebrow, she said "You mean besides stealing your boyfriend?"

"It was my fault that Sam and I broke up. And we had been broken up a long time before the two of you hooked up." _Well, that sounded bitchy. Nice job Quinn, you just couldn't say 'before the two of you fell in love', could you?  
><em>

"Yeah, but you're my best friend. I should've told you."

"Yes, you should have. But I know my own temper and I know how I sometimes react… needless to say, I understand why you didn't tell me, Mercedes."

"But still, dragging him to Artie's party… making out with him in front of everybody… in front of you."

"I actually didn't see that. I only saw you holding hands. But thanks for that image though," she said chuckling awkwardly.

"Sorry, I just figured you'd-… wait, how did you know we were a couple then?"

"Apparently Kurt had seen you at the coffee shop in the mall. He texted me immediately."

"Oh my god, you knew for so long? I feel terrible," she said rolling her eyes while shaking her head.

"Mercedes, stop being so hard on yourself. You are not doing anything wrong." Quinn took her hand. "I'm not mad at you."

"You may not be mad at me, but I can see your pain when he holds me or whispers things into my ear. And as much as I enjoy that, it's killing me to see you look so sad."

_Again, thanks for the image,_ Quinn thought, but kept it to herself this time. "First of all, your relationship is none of my business. And secondly, you're exaggerating. Really. I'm fine."

The black girl squinted at her.

"I'm fine." Quinn repeated nodding her head.

"Are you sure?"

"If not, I'd tell you. I promise." _I wonder if he's given her a promise ring as well.  
><em>

"So we're cool?"

"Yes, Mercedes. We're cool" Quinn stood up and hugged her best friend.

"Thank God. I've really missed you, Quinnie."

"Missed you too."

As they were hugging, the rest of the Glee club came back to the choir room. Quinn sat back down on the first row and Mercedes caressed her shoulder from behind.

_It's really getting to her, _Quinn thought. _My reaction to their relationship – it's really getting to her. I've got to stop being so moody and emotional around them. She's my best friend and I need to accept them as a couple for her sake. I can do this. I'm Quinn Fabray. _She straightened her back and smiled, already feeling better.

Gus sat down next to her and regarded her.

"Today, you are very beautiful," he said. She appreciated the compliment, but she still couldn't really figure him out.

Shortly after, Sam entered the room and Quinn quickly looked down at her hands. _I may be feeling better, but I'm still not at ease with him. I can't face him just yet. I wonder if he has noticed that I keep avoiding his eyes. _By the way he sighed as he passed her, she figured _I guess he has._

"So, first of all," Mr. Schue began. "I want to thank, Mr. Prideaux for-"

"Please, call me Gus."

"All right, I want to thank Gus for breaking the ice just before. I feel we needed that after the summer break, it seemed like we were all a little tense."

_You have no idea_, Quinn, Sam and Mercedes thought simultaneously.

"Before we continue I've gotten a special request from two students… apparently we already have our first suggestion for sectionals: Sam, Mercedes, the scene is yours."

Quinn closed her eyes inhaling deeply. _Don't do this Quinn, be the bigger person._

She opened her eyes and tried to put on a smile as the couple stood in front of the piano. Gus looked at her furrowing his eyebrows. She gave him a quick smile.

"Okay, so, uh, we've been talking and, uh…" Sam chuckled shyly.

"…over the last couple of weeks…" his girlfriend continued

"Yeah, and 'Cedes and I have been practicing a little something."

_'Cedes_? _I so can't be the bigger person  
><em>

"You see, Sam and I would like to do a duet at sectionals. We know you all have to approve first, so we thought we might give you a little appetizer."

Rachel murmured something inaudible, but Finn quickly hushed her.

Sam looked at his girlfriend and chuckled again. "It's kind of an old song, but it's about love, so I guess it's still pretty relevant."

_Okay, first test, Quinn. Just keep smiling._

Sam grabbed his guitar and began playing some different chords. After a little while he began singing.

"_I hear singing and there's no one there_  
><em>I smell blossoms and the trees are bare<em>  
><em>All day long I seem to walk on air<em>  
><em>I wonder why<em>  
><em>I wonder why<em>  
><em>I keep tossing in my sleep at night<em>  
><em>And what's more I've lost my appetite<em>  
><em>Stars that used to twinkle in the skies<em>  
><em>Are twinkling in my eyes<em>  
><em>I wonder why"<em>

So far Mercedes had been standing at the piano following the music sheet. Now she turned to face Sam and began approaching him while singing

_"You don't need analyzing_  
><em>It is not so surprising<em>  
><em>That you feel very strange but nice<em>  
><em>Your heart goes pitter patter<em>  
><em>I know just what's the matter<em>  
><em>Because I've been there once or twice<em>  
><em>Put your head on my shoulder<em>  
><em>You need someone who's older<em>  
><em>A rubdown with a velvet glove<em>  
><em>There is nothing you can take<em>  
><em>To relieve that pleasant ache<em>  
><em>You're not sick<em>  
><em>You're just in love"<em>

By the end of the second verse they were dancing around each other, smiling and winking at each other. Then they both repeated their verses at the same time, harmonizing perfectly.

_"I hear singing and there's no one there / You don't need analyzing, it is not so surprising_  
><em>I smell blossoms and the trees are bare  That you feel very strange but nice_  
><em>All day long I seem to walk on air  Your heart goes pitter patter, I know just what's the matter_  
><em>I wonder why, I wonder why  Because I've been there once or twice_  
><em>I keep tossing in my sleep at night  Put your head on my shoulder; you need someone who's older_  
><em>And what's more I've lost my appetite  A rubdown with a velvet glove_  
><em>Stars that used to twinkle in the skies  There is nothing you can take_  
><em>Are twinkling in my eyes  To relieve that pleasant ache_  
><em>I wonder why  You're not sick, you're just in love"_

They held the last note for a long time, Sam with an arm around Mercedes' waist. When the note ended, he pecked her on the cheek, making sure his guitar didn't come in the way.

The entire group clapped enthusiastically, some rejoicing.

_That look in his eyes. He really loves her. Oh god oh god oh god, _Quinn thought as she quietly began to pant. _Don't do this Quinn. Not here. _Her eyes began to burn and she could feel her lip tremble.

"Wow, that was awesome guys! Really awesome! I can't believe we've had to oldies in one day without me forcing you to do it; that's a first." Mr. Schue said as Sam Mercedes took their seats in the second row next to Kurt.

_Stop it Quinn, stop it. Don't cry. Don't cry_.

"Quinn," Gus whispered. "Are you okay?"

She couldn't even speak; she just sat there trying to catch her breath. _He really loves her._

Gus quickly looked around and decided that there was only one thing to do.

He turned around to the one guy he knew would understand him and said loudly (to drown out the applausing crowd) "J'ai besoin de la réconforter, aidez-moi et fais un mensonge."_ ["I need to comfort her, help me and make an excuse."]_

Luckily Kurt had noticed how Quinn's shoulders had been shaking for the last few seconds, so he quickly understood what Gus wanted him to do.

The French boy grabbed the blonde's elbow and pulled her up on her feet before hurriedly dragging her out of the choir room.

"He just remembered that he had a meeting with Miss Pillsbury today… a-and he needs Quinn as a translator," Kurt said quickly when everybody turned their heads towards the disappearing pair. Their exit had looked rather unusual, but because the glee clubbers were still so excited about Samcedes' duet, they didn't ask any further questions.

Out in the hallway, Gus pulled Quinn a few feet away from the choir room so that no one could see or hear them and then he pushed her up against a locker looking her in the eyes. He was just about to ask her what had happened, when he noticed she still wasn't breathing properly.

He then wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in for a hug, squeezing her tightly.

"Respirez, ma chérie. Respirez." _["Breathe, my dear. Breathe."]_

He began rubbing her bag with one hand.

"Tu as besoin de respire." _["You need to breathe."]_

Slowly her panting was replaced by loud sobs as she draped her arms around his neck.

"Oh… my… god…" she cried as the tears ran down her face.

While rubbing her bag with one hand, he began stroking her hair with the other one.

"Do no speak, ma chérie."

He kept on snuggling her until her breathing returned to normal. She was still sniffling when he slowly took a step backward, holding on to her shoulders and regarding her face.

"Better?"

"Yes. Thank you," she said with a small voice.

"De rien."

He reached for her neck and fixed her Eiffel tower, since it was hanging askew.

"You know, maybe you are not a good Christian, but you are a very good Parisien," he smirked using the French word for a Parisian.

She let out a small giggle and sniffled yet again. Then he wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs and asked if she was ready to return to the choir room.

"N-no, I can't go back there now."

"Je comprend bien. Maybe you will tell me why you are not okay?"_ ["I understand."]_

She looked at him, considering if that might make me her feel better, but then decided against it because of her pride.

"I think I just want to go home, Gus. I'm sorry."

"No sorry. C'est bon."

He kissed her cheek and at that moment Kurt came walking down the hall holding her bag.

"Thought you might be needing this," he said, seeing her tear stained face.

"Thanks," Quinn answered as she hugged him.

"Please be happy Quinnie." He handed her her bag and then took Gus' arm.

"Let's go, monsieur. The others are waiting." Kurt looked back at her and waved his eyebrows while dramatically mouthing 'not gay'.

Quinn giggled and headed towards the school exit.

As she crossed the school parking lot, she looked up in the sky where a few grey clouds were floating around.

_I guess the summer is coming to an end,_ she thought as she entered her car and drove home.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>So there we have our first few pay-offs. I know it can be difficult to remember minor details from conversations when I don't upload more often than I do. I'm sorry about that, but school and work unfortunately make it difficult for me to upload new chapters more frequently. Reviews, story alerts and author alerts do help though... a lot :-) Glücklich Samstag!<p> 


	11. The Damn Lilacs

**Chapter 11: The Damn Lilacs  
>Chapter song: "Baby Driver" – Simon &amp; Garfunkel<br>Time: September**

* * *

><p>Sam skipped down the stairs and went through the living room, where his parents were unpacking some boxes.<p>

"Going for a ride, be home later," he said, already half way out the door.

"Sam, wait" his dad called. "Where are you going? It's almost 9 o'clock."

"I'm just going to take Mercedes out for ice cream…" He had done that numerous times over the summer, so he didn't see why it was a big deal.

"But it's September," his mother said, seeming rather confused.

"Okay, so maybe I'll take her for some hot chocolate." He was running late and not really interested in a dating lesson from his mother.

"Sam, it's a school night and your siblings will be in their beds in less than half an hour, so don't be home too late."

"Fine." He dramatically rolled his eyes.

The Evans family had moved to their new house at the end of July, so they were still settling in. After his dad had gotten a new job as a store manager of a clothing store for men at the mall, the family had been doing okay and they had finally been able to move out of the motel. Now they lived in a small row house not too far away from McKinley. It was a quiet road and because of the size of the houses, most of their neighbors were pensioners.

Sam started his car and drove out of the garage. After about 20 minutes he reached a road he knew very well. He'd been there numerous times at different occasions, always joyous ones. There were freshly cut lilac trees on each side separating the pavement from the street and all the houses were white painted mansions surrounded by white fences. Only one of the houses had a baby blue fence and that was the one house he'd actually been inside of.

He approached the house and began reminiscing how many times he'd parked his car in the drive way and walked up the little path to the front door with butterflies in his stomach and slightly sweaty hands. He would knock on the large wooden door, waiting to hear the familiar pattern of her footsteps. And then, the door would carefully be opened, and there, in her Cheerios outfit or in a cute little sun dress, his favorite little blonde would be standing with a shy smile and a twinkle in her eye. Sam felt his heart drop just by thinking about her.

As he drove by the house, he instinctively looked up at the window on the first floor where she'd sometimes be sitting, waiting for him. He slowed down.

And there she was. In all her glory. She was sitting in her large windowsill, her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin resting upon her knees. Her hair was hanging down her back and as far as he could see, she was just wearing a white nightgown.

_She still looks gorgeous though. She always does. _

The night gown was pretty short and Sam could just about get an idea of the creamy skin of her thighs.

As he passed her house, he wondered if she'd recognize his car. Then he realized she wasn't looking down at the road, but rather at the horizon.

_She's probably thinking about the future. _He thought. _She has a tendency to do that… I miss her._

Being totally swallowed up by his ex-girlfriend Sam wasn't looking at the road and almost ran down a dog. The dog was fine, but Sam had to pull the breaks resulting in his old car making a rather loud sound.

That caught Quinn's attention.

Sam quickly drove on thinking _Shit, shit, shit. Don't do this man, think about Mercedes. You are going to see Mercedes. You are not going to destroy your car because of Quinn. That's just plain stupid. _He stepped on the speeder and exhaled.

_Was that Sam's car? _Quinn thought as she stretched her neck, trying to see what had made that noise down on the street, but she couldn't see much because of the golden colored leaves of the trees. _Damn lilacs, _she mused before turning her gaze towards the horizon once again.

Sam drove for yet another ten minutes until he pulled up in front of Mercedes house. He went up the door and knocked. Shortly after, his girlfriend opened the door, looking a little disappointed.

"You're late Sam,"

"Sorry, my parents kept bugging me," he said pecking her cheek. "Wanna go for an ice cream?"

"Sam…"

"Right, it's September. What about a cup of chocolate then?"

"Mercedes," a deep voice called from the other room. "It's half past nine. You're not going anywhere at this hour on a school night."

"Oh," Sam whimpered. "Sorry."

"It's cool. Can we just stay in tonight? I want to talk to you about something."

_Uh-oh, this can't be good._ "Uhm, sure."

He stepped inside and followed Mercedes to her room, after waving at her father, who was sitting with a newspaper in the living room. The older man just nodded, not really seeming pleased.

Mercedes sat down on her bed and motioned for Sam to sit down next to her. As he sat down, he caught a glimpse of her bra and his thoughts went straight to Quinn in that nightgown.

"Look Sam, I wanted to ask you something…"

"Huh? Uh, yeah, sure…" he said, feeling a little guilty. Here he was, sitting alone in a room with this beautiful, funny and talented girl and all he could think about was a girl who cheated on him.

"Are you thinking about Quinn?"

"Wh-what? As in right now?" _Oh shit, she's totally reading my mind, _he thought, feeling his palms becoming sweaty.

"No, I mean like in general."

"I don't know. No, not really," he lied. "Why?"

"It's just… I don't know, it's like you can't really take your eyes off of her. And you wince every time she talks to Gus. If I didn't know any better, I'd think you still…"

"You'd think I still what?" Sam asked frowning.

"I'd think you still loved her." She immediately casted her gaze downwards.

He put a thumb beneath her chin and turned her face towards him. "Then it's a good thing you know better, huh?" he asked gently brushing her lips with his.

Mercedes gave him a small smile, but she still looked worried.

"Look, 'Cedes. I don't love Quinn. I don't. I wouldn't be with you if I did. But fact is that she's my ex-girlfriend and she was pretty important to me for a while. So yeah, I'm still kind of aware of her. I notice her in Glee club and I get a little strained when I find out that she's been throwing herself at some French dude she doesn't even know."

_She's been throwing herself at what? _Mercedes wondered. _As far as I know she thinks Gus is gay._

Sam took Mercedes hand and held it in his own. "It's natural for me to still care about her. She was my first real girlfriend. But that doesn't mean I care any less about you."

"But you're my first real boyfriend, Sam. And I like being around you but fact is that you're not treating me very well."

Sam looked down at his hands, feeling slightly ashamed.

"I know I can be demanding and I'm a lot to handle at times. I'm a diva, I know that. But that doesn't mean you can get away with staring at other girls and keep lingering in your former relationships. We have fun and that's great, but I'm a woman and I need you treat me like one."

Sam sighed heavily. "You're right. I'm so sorry."

He put his arm around her neck and reluctantly she turned to face him so that he could hug her. He kissed her cheek and she rested her head on his shoulder.

"I promise I'll do better. Just give me one more chance, okay?"

"Sure."

They smiled at each other.

_She has such a cute smile. I really like that smile, _he thought.

"You better get home now, though. Otherwise my dad is going to be up here in a minute ready to beat you up."

Sam chuckled. "Of course. I'll walk myself out."

He stood up and took a step away from her bed, but then he turned around, kissed her on her forehead. Then he headed for her door.

_I guess he's gotten off to a good start_, Mercedes mused while lovingly rubbing the place on her forehead where he'd kissed her.

When Sam got into his car he paused for a moment, thinking about what his girlfriend had said.

_I've got to do better. I love Mercedes. I know that (or… I'm pretty sure I do). I've got to stop focusing on Quinn. We're not together anymore. She cheated on me like she cheated on Finn and now she's dating that Gus-guy. It's over between us. _

_Why don't I get that? It's not like I love her anymore. I don't even know if I loved her when we were together (yes I did. I loved her dearly). _

_I just need to think about me and 'Cedes singing together in Glee Club. That was so much fun, I love performing with her. I just need to think about that. I'm so lucky that she's my girlfriend. _

And he thought about that as he drove… right until he reached Quinn's house. Then he began humming 'Lucky' and without even realizing it, he spent the rest of the drive thinking about his ex-girlfriend in that nightgown.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>Okay, so a short chapter this time. I apologize, but it's already late in my country. I feel I've kind of distanced myself from Mercedes in this story despite the fact that I love her character. So here's her side of the story :-) I promise another update before the weekend ends - and the next will definitely be a little longer. Have a lovely day!<p> 


	12. Confrontation

**Chapter 12: Confrontation  
><strong>**Chapter song: "Yes, We Have no Bananas" – Sam Lavin  
>Time: <strong>**Septem****ber**

* * *

><p>AN: This chapter features the movie "Sabrina" with Audrey Hepburn. If you have seen this filmheard of this film, you can easily skip this Author's Note. If not, it might be a good idea to keep on reading:

In short, "Sabrina" is about a mousy chauffeur's daughter who is in love with the playboy-son of her father's boss. She's awkward and botched and the playboy doesn't even notice her. Then she heads off to Paris, becomes stylish and chique, and returns to the U.S. as a brand new person. Now, the playboy-son does does not only notice, he falls head over heels for her. But Sabrina Fair quickly realizes that it's her father's boss' oldest son, whom she might be attracted to - and so the story goes.

* * *

><p><em>Paris. The sun is shining. The birds are singing. The long grass is tickling her ankles. Sam is here. It smells like ice cream. She could go for an ice cream. She can always go for an ice cream, it's her favorite dish. Sam always tells her that ice cream can't be her favorite dish since it's not a dish. She doesn't care. A couple of French school kids are chanting. They're dancing through the park. She dances along with them. Sam dances too. They dance towards the Eiffel Tower. Then under the Eiffel tower. It gets darker. Sam is gone. The smell of ice cream disappears and now it smells like coffee. Café au lait? No. not café au lait. Not some delicious French coffee. More like bad tasting black coffee. Black coffee mixed with cigarettes and… and… bad breath… miss Fabray… miss Fabray...<em>

"MISS FABRAY!"

"Huh? What?" Quinn looked around the class room, her eyes full of confusion.

Her English literature teacher was standing in front of her. He had bent down so his head was right in front of hers.

_That explains the bad breath, _she thought absentmindedly.

"Miss Fabray, if you're going to sleep at this hour of day, you might as well be doing it at home. This class ends in fifteen minutes and I expect you to have finished this work sheet before leaving," her teacher said, throwing a piece of paper on her desk.

Quinn apologized and then groaned as her teacher went away. Finn and Rachel were sitting in front of her looking a bit guilty.

"Why didn't you guys wake me up?" she hissed, feeling embarrassed.

"Sorry Quinn," Rachel began. "But you were looking so peaceful. So relaxed. And you've seemed a little, uh, uptight lately, so we figured you could use a little nap. If we had known that Mr. Elgreen was going to notice and, well, yell at you in front of everybody,"

Quinn winced slightly.

"…we would have woken you up. We're sorry."

"Yeah," Finn continued, blushing a bit. "Plus you were kind of saying Sam's name over and over so we didn't really want to-"

He was interrupted as Rachel kicked him under the table, frowning at him.

"Ouch!" Finn exclaimed

_Oh god, _Quinn thought. _Wonderful. Now they think I'm having sex dreams about my best friend's boyfriend in the middle of English lit. _

She looked down at her worksheet and began answering the questions

Fifteen minutes later, she still wasn't done, so she decided to stay for a little while, finishing up.

Ten minutes later, just as she was finishing the worksheet, there was a soft knock on the door. She looked up and saw a confused Gus.

"Quinn? I wait at your car, but you not come," he said, sounding a little hurt.

It took her a moment to realize what he meant.

"Oh my god, Gus, I'm so sorry. I've been sleeping so badly these past couple of days, I'd completely forgotten about our study date." _Tutor session, Quinn, tutor session! Not study date, not a date!_

"Oh," Gus said, sounding rather disappointed. "I understand. Uh, I go out and wait for school bus."

He was about to walk out the door, when Quinn called him back.

"Gus, I'm not doing anything today, so you can still come home with me, it's no problem."

He considered it for a moment. "But you are, uh, fatigue."

"Tired," she corrected him. "Well, I got a little nap just before. Listen, I just need to deliver this at Mr. Elgreen's office and then I'm ready to go. It's not a problem. Okay?"

"Okay," he smiled. "But you say to me when you are very tired, yes?"

"Sure." She got up and gathered her things.

...

When they entered her room, Quinn kicked off her ballet flats and went straight to the mirror hanging in the other end of the room. Gus sat down on her chaise longue and studied her.

"Oh Jesus, my mascara is completely smudged," she whined as she began rubbing the skin around her eyes with her thumb. "I'm just going to remove my make-up, Gus. I'll be back in a sec."

She went to the bathroom and pulled out the make-up removal cream. Since her natural hair color wasn't blonde, her eyelashes were pretty dark, so she didn't feel insecure not wearing mascara. She pinned up her hair and went back to her room.

Gus looked at her for a moment seemingly amused.

"What?" Quinn asked with a smile.

"It's, uh, you are very beautiful. Also _sans_ make-up."

"You think I'm beautiful without make up?"

"Yes._ Une beauté naturelle_. Like an old movie star. You make me think of, uh, American actress… _quel est son nom_… _ah, oui:_ Grace Kelly," he said with a heavy accent._ ["A natural beauty. ... what is her name... oh, yes."]_

"Oh, Grace Kelly. Yeah," Quinn chuckled as she sat down on her bed.

"You think so to, yes?"

"Oh, no no… I mean, I don't know… It's just that I've been told that before." She thought of how that Jesse-kid from Vocal Adrenaline had given her a similar compliment at prom night.

"_Alors, il doit être__vrai_. She is an _idole_ for you, no?" _["So, it must be true. She's an idol for you?"]_

"An idol? No, not really. I think she's beautiful, no doubt, so it's a really sweet compliment, but I'm more of an Audrey Hepburn-fan."

Gus tilted his head slightly.

"Do you know Audrey Hepburn?"

"Ha! Ah Quinn, you make me laugh," he almost yelled, falling back on the chaise longue. "You not forget; Audrey Hepburn is European not American. Of course I know her."

"Yeah, well Europe is a big place," Quinn chuckled while thinking that Gus was one of the only boys she knew who actually knew who Audrey Hepburn was.

_Sam knows who she is too though. I once watched My Fair Lady with Stacey. He was doing his homework, but I know he was secretly paying attention to the movie. I think he was fascinated by all of their dancing and singing, _she thought.

"You like Europe, no?" Gus asked.

Quinn reached up and touched her Eiffel tower necklace. "I do. I love Europe. I haven't been so many different places, mostly just Paris, but I love Paris. I actually discovered my love for Paris because of Audrey Hepburn."

"_Comment?_" _["How?]_

"Well, when I was twelve, my mother took me to the cinema. It was a special occasion and they were showing "Sabrina". Until then I didn't really care much for movies, but when I saw Sabrina… oh boy, was I fascinated. It was like a whole new world opening up to me. Like I was seeing everything in it's realness for the first time: what love is, what dance is, what fashion is, what passion is... and all those things were in my head linked to one specific place,"

"Paris," Gus whispered mesmerized.

"Yep. So the following summer, my mom took me to Paris. Just for a few days, but I swear it was the time of my life…" _Sam. _"…and we've been there every summer ever since. Even when times were hard," she said, thinking of her father.

"Hard?"

"Oh, never mind." She didn't really feel like telling this stranger (_he's so not a stranger anymore_, _though_) about her dissolved family.

"It is funny, I have not see "Sabrina"."

"Oh, you really should!" Quinn exclaimed. "Besides Audrey, it has Humphrey Bogart, Billy Holden and it was directed by Billy Wilder… you know, I actually have it on dvd. You want to watch it?"

"Yes, very much," Gus said as he stood up.

Quinn got up as well and popped in the dvd. She then went back to her bed, positioned the pillows against her head board and lay back.

When she saw Gus standing awkwardly in the middle of her room, she motioned for him to come and sit next to her. He hesitated, but then took of his bright red all stars and lay down next to her.

_Thank god my bed is queen size, other this would be terribly awkward._

Quinn pressed play and the opening titles began.

During the movie Quinn glanced over at Gus a couple of times, though careful not to turn her head to much, as they were lying pretty close together. The exchange student looked completely captured by the motion picture, and Quinn couldn't help but wonder.

_This guy confuses me so much. He hesitates with getting in bed with me, obviously aware of the tension. But then he's really into this movie and I know Audrey Hepburn is stunning, but still… it's a romantic comedy from the 50's. And not a very action-filled one. There aren't even any musical numbers. Which team does he play for?_

Exhausted from her lack of sleep during the last few nights, Quinn slowly felt her thoughts trail off. She struggled to keep her eyes open but was quickly losing the battle.

When she opened her eyes, the end credits were on the screen and her head was resting upon Gus' chest. He had an arm around her and was whispering her name.

"Oh, sorry." She immediately sat up and wiped away a bit of drool in the corner of her mouth.

"_C'est bon,_" he said sitting up as well and moving towards the chaise longue.

"I slept through the whole thing?" she asked.

"No no, just the last half hour."

_I'm a light sleeper, how the hell did I manage to do that? I really must have been tired._

"Sorry," she murmured once again.

"You know, Quinn, I can go home now and you can sleep. You are tired, yes?"

"No no, it's fine Gus, I feel much more awake now." _Liar, _she mused to herself. "So, what did you think?"

"It was very good. Audrey Hepburn is very beautiful. But I don't like, uh, Humphey… Humphr…"

"Humphrey Bogart? I think he's a wonderful actor."

"Yes I am sure. But for Audrey Hepburn he is very old."

"He _is_ very old. Too old. But you see, that was sort of her trademark – always falling in love with guys much older than herself in her movies."

"Oh, I did not know." He then paused. He scrunched up his face a bit, wondering how to approach the subject. "Quinn, I wonder. Why do you love Sabrina very much?"

She blinked confusedly. "I already told you. The clothes, the plot, the era-"

"No Quinn," he interrupted her. "Why do you love Sabrina?"

He was eyeballing her, and then she realized where he was going with this.

"Well," she began, thinking _how does he know me so well already?_ "I think I love the movie so much because… because I feel somehow connected to Sabrina Fair."

He nodded his head and gestured for her to continue.

"Every year when I go to Paris, I have this dream that everything will be different when I return. Like I'm Sabrina in her little girl dress, with her messy hair, hiding in a tree, watching all these normal people act the way they should and she tries so desperately to fit in, but she just can't. And then she goes to Paris and she undergoes this transformation. When she returns everything is different. She looks great, she's elegant and poised, her crush falls for her and she finds true love.  
>"So when I go to Paris every summer, I desperately hope to get to know myself well enough so that when I return, I won't be Sabrina Fair, the chauffeur's daughter. I'll be Sabrina Fair, the self-confident grown-up who doesn't act childishly and who thinks rationally and who's able to find the right guy. The Sabrina Fair, who knows who she is."<p>

Gus nodded for a moment, processing what she had just said.

"Quinn," he finally began. "You ever think maybe you have, uh, transformed or what it is called?"

She looked at him not understanding what he was trying to say.

"You are 18 now, so you are grown-up, no? And I don't think you act childishly. Au contraire. You are one of the very elegant girls I know. You are sweet and kind and patient and… all of your friends, look how they treats you. They love you. Maybe you are not certain who you are, but all your friends – they know who you are. _We_ know who you are."

She stared at him, once again blown away by his attentive manor. "Y-you really think that?"

"_Oui._" He then paused wondering if he should raise the next subject. "And from I hear in the locker room, you have changed over summer."

He slowly got up and sat next to her on the bed, his feet still at the floor.

Quinn winced slightly, thinking _this is it. The inevitable confrontation that occurs every time I meet a new person._

"Speak to me,"

"Gus, I really don't want-"

"Please, Quinn. I see you at Glee rehearsel. You are so _triste_. Speak to me."

She inhaled deeply and then, slowly, began telling her new friend everything. She told him about how she was when she started in high school, about the Cheerios and her status. Then the pregnancy and how that affected her, and suddenly she couldn't stop. She told him everything about her high school life and how she saw herself and as she reached the end of the story, telling him about Samcedes, she was sobbing loudly once again.

He had put his arms around her in a tight embrace and was now gently rocking her back and forth.

"…and I don't want to go back and be my old hateful, angry, bitchy self, I don't want to be that jealous girl who has no real friends. But it's damn hard to act like a grown-up when I see him with her everywhere I go," she cried.

He nodded and stroked her hair.

"Why can't I just be like Audrey Hepburn. She was sweet and kind and patient, but nobody ever made her sad. She had so much love to give and so much respect for other people, why don't I have that?"

"You do, Quinn."

"No, I don't! I cheat on my boyfriends, I steal boys from other girls… I've lied so much these past years."

"_Oui, mais pas maintenant._ You are finish with that. You do not that anymore. You are like Audrey Hepburn."_ ["Yes, but not now."]_

"No, I'm not."

"Yes you are. You are change over summer."

She kept on crying into his neck until a wave of exhaustion flushed in over her.

…

"Quinn," he whispered, gently caressing her cheek.

"Hmmm, what?" she opened her eyes and realized what had happened; she had once again fallen asleep on top of the French boy.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry Gus. I don't know why I keep doing that."

She stood up from the bed and fixed her dress, and then she wiped the corner of her mouth for that inevitable little bit of drool. This time though she saw Gus had a wet spot at the size of a nickel on his shirt where her head had been resting just a few seconds ago.

_Jesus, he must think I'm a five-year-old._

"It is okay. It is good that you sleep, it make you relax." He smiled at her, and she enjoyed how he always made her feel so at ease.

He then cleared his throat and began putting on his All Stars. "However, it is late and mes parents américaine will be worry soon."

"Oh, sure. I'll take you home." She put on her ballet flats and they headed downstairs and out to her car.

When she put the key in the ignition, she saw the light in the living room was on. _Mom is home? _She thought, knowing her mother was always working until late on weekdays.

_I wonder what time it is.  
><em>

Twenty minutes later she pulled up in front of the little row house. The road was deadly quiet at this hour since most of the habitants were older people, who went to bed early, Gus had told her.

"I'm sorry Gus, I hope you don't get in too much trouble for staying out so late. I am grateful you stayed with me though, it was really nice."

"_Bien sûr, cherie_," he said kissing her cheek. Then he went inside and Quinn drove home. _["Of course, my dear."]_

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading<strong>!  
>So, at work today, one of my customers was humming "Yes! We have no bananas" and I immediately thought of "Sabrina", thus inspiring me to write this chapter. I kinda felt like Quinn Fabray could relate to the story line of this great movie, but maybe it's a little far-fetched. I sometimes wonder where the line between the author's freedom and the complete change of characters goes.<br>I don't know how interesting this chapter is if you haven't watched "Sabrina", but I hope you got something out of it anyways. I've already written a part of the next chapter, so I'll update relatively soon. Thank you for the sweet reviews - please keep them coming, I can't tell you how happy they make me!


	13. Conversation

**Chapter 13: Conversation  
>Chapter song: "Don't Smoke in Bed" – Nina Simone<br>Time: September**

* * *

><p>When Quinn got home, the light in the living room was still on. She went inside the house and found her mother sleeping on the couch, a magazine collapsed on her breasts. She was snoring lightly, though she still looked graceful.<p>

_I wonder if I snored when I slept on Gus today, _Quinn thought. _I wonder if I snored when I fell asleep during English lit._ _Oh god, I really must have been tired today._

She put the magazine on the coffee table and blew out the candle Judy had lit earlier that evening. Then she covered her mother with a blanket and left the living room. Just as she was making her way out through the kitchen, she heard a small voice call.

"Quinnie? Is that you?"

Quinn went back into the living room. "Yes mom, it's just me."

"Wh-where have you been?"

"I just dropped off Gus. It got a little late, so I didn't want to wake you up."

"But… you just got home?"

"Yes."

"Quinnie, it's half past ten," her mother said, glancing at the clock on the downstairs dvd player.

"I know, which is why I'm going straight to bed now," Quinn said in a matter of fact-tone before turning on her heel.

"I don't think this is okay," her mother said, sounding a tad annoyed.

_Here we go_.

"It's a school night and you shouldn't be driving around at this hour."

"Mom, he lives like 20 minutes away, it's no problem."

"20 minutes away? So… the two of you have been in your room the entire evening?"

"Uh, yeah… I guess." _Uh-oh, bad move, _Quinn thought.

"That's not very appropriate. You are not going to have strange boys staying in your room until ten o'clock on school nights!"

"But mom, we didn't do anything, we just slept together."

Her mom looked shocked and Quinn quickly regretted her choice of words.

"W-we didn't sleep together, I slept, and he just didn't want to wake me up."

"You slept with him?" her mother exclaimed angrily.

"No, mom, I didn't sleep _with _him. I've been really exhausted lately and I just fell asleep. He didn't want to wake me up, so he just waited until he had to go home."

Her mother simply frowned in response.

"Please mom, I _have_ been pregnant once, you really think I'm going to let that happen again?"

"I-I don't know what to say, Quinnie. It's just not very lady-like behavior; falling asleep with a strange man in your room."

"Mom, he's not a stranger. He's my friend and I can trust him."

"But he's French!" Judy said, sounding scared.

"Jesus, mom!" Now it was Quinn's turn to be angry. "I can't believe you can be so prejudiced! He didn't rape me or anything; he was just too kind to wake me up. Fact is that Gus is more of a gentleman than any American boy I know!" she yelled.

_Why do I feel like I just betrayed someone? _She mused, and then she remembered whom she'd considered being the biggest gentleman before she met Gus. _Sam. _She quickly shook the thought out of her head. _I love Sam, but he's too much of a dork to be a real gentleman._

"Gentleman or not, I don't want you having boys over at this hour on school nights, is that understood?" her mother asked.

_Wait… did I just admit that I love Sam?  
><em>

"Quinn!"

"W-what?"

"You're not going to have boys visit you at this hour on school days anymore!"

"Mom, I'm 18. I'm an adult and you have got to stop treating me like a little girl."

"As long as you're living in this house you need to follow my rules."

"Seriously mom, you're starting to sound like dad," Quinn snarled.

Her mother frowned and then casted her eyes downward. "Go to your room, Quinnie. I don't want to have this conversation right now."

Quinn immediately felt bad for her last snarky remark, but she couldn't take it back now. She retreated to her room and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

…

The next morning, Quinn got up early and made breakfast for her mother. She put the plate and the cup of coffee on a tray, which she placed on the coffee table in her mother's room, careful not to wake her up.

When she left for school, Quinn felt slightly better than she did the night before.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>Awfully short, but that was all I had time for! I promise another (and longer) chapter before the week ends!<p> 


	14. Twink or not

**Chapter 14: Twink or not  
>Chapter song: "Milord" – Édith Piaf<br>Time: October**

* * *

><p>It was raining heavily when Quinn's car rolled up in front of the mall. <em>Damn it, <em>she thought as she had spent half an hour curling her hair that day. It was Saturday noon and she was meeting Kurt, Blaine and Rachel for lunch.

She pulled the key out of the ignition and put it in her handbag. Then she opened the glove compartment, hoping to find something useful in there. She searched around for a little while, and then she pulled out her old Marimekko umbrella. It was red with a large pink flower pattern and actually fit pretty well with the dark green dress, she was wearing. Her dress had three quarter sleeves, but it only went up to an inch above her knees. She knew it was a little daring for an October day, but she figured she wouldn't really be outside.

She put on her black sweater, opened the car door, opened the umbrella just outside the car, and then she stepped out. She began walking towards the mall but freaked out a little about the rain drops making such a loud noise upon the umbrella, so she quickly started to run the rest of the way up to the entrance.

When she got inside, she looked around at the bottom floor of the mall, when she heard someone call her name.

"Quinn!" It was Rachel, who was eagerly waving at her. She was sitting at a table across from Kurt and Blaine.

Quinn smiled, waved her hand and then closed her umbrella as she approached her friends.

"Hi guys," she said sitting down.

"Well, don't you look stylish today," Kurt said. "Very Jackie O."

"Thank you, have you ordered yet?"

"No, not yet."

They called the waiter and ordered four salads. Then Blaine asked the girls about their summer, when Kurt interrupted him.

"Sorry, but we have a more important matter to discuss."

Both Rachel and Quinn looked just as confused as Blaine, so Kurt rolled his eyes and hollered: "Augustin Prideax, mesdames et monsieur!"

"Oh, Quinn's boyfriend?" Blaine asked, as Kurt had already told him a little bit.

"_Not_ my boyfriend," Quinn snarled while rolling her eyes.

"He just acts like it," Rachel said smilingly.

"Have you kissed yet?" Blaine asked.

"No," Quinn answered. "Not really." _But we've done something that's far worse, at least according to my mother.  
><em>

"Well, does he want to kiss you?"

Quinn opened her mouth as she was just about to answer, but then paused since she had no idea how to reply to that.

"Well?" Rachel said.

"Excuse me, isn't anyone at this table interested in my expertise knowledge?" Kurt asked before Quinn could muster up an answer.

"Sorry sweetie," Blaine grinned. "Do tell."

"You've figured him out?" Quinn asked sounding impressed.

"Actually… I kept thinking I had, yes, but then he'd do something completely unexpected and I'd start all over again."

The waitress came with their plates, and the four of them began eating as Kurt continued with his analysis.

"At first when I saw him at the Glee club meeting, I was convinced that he was straight. I mean, no gay guy would comb his hair like that with such a humongous nose."

Rachel immediately looked hurt, but Kurt knowing Rachel as well as he did, said right away: "Stop it, Rach, you're beautiful."

She kind of giggled and Kurt continued.

"But then I noticed his clothes. His shirt was ironed to perfection and his shoes were so clean."

Quinn chuckled when she thought about Gus' bright red All Stars.

"Then I watched him throughout the class: his movements were so… dainty, almost like a dancer's,"

"I thought that too, the first time I met him," Quinn interposed.

"But then again, he was constantly looking at you, Q, and he kept leaning into you and whispering things to you, just like the two of you were a couple. And then there was the whole cross-thing, which just confused me even more."

"Yeah, about that…" Rachel said turning to face Quinn. "What happened to your cross."

"Love the new necklace, by the way," Kurt said. "_Très chic._"

"Thanks Kurt." Quinn cleared her throat as she reached for her Eiffel tower. "I bought this in Paris this summer and, I don't know, I guess after my mom kicked my dad out I haven't really been as interested in God or in Jesus or whatever."

Kurt faked a dramatically shocked expression.

"Don't get me wrong, I still go to church every Sunday and I like to be part of that community, but I guess I'm just not really interested in shoving my religion up in everyone's faces anymore," she murmured.

"You've changed quite a bit since last year, haven't you?" Kurt asked.

_Why do I keep hearing that, _Quinn thought as she finished her lunch.

"So there I was in Glee rehearsal having absolutely no clue if the European boy sitting in front of me was a twink or not…"

"Twink? Really?" Blaine asked, obviously amused by his boyfriend's jargon.

"… and the next thing I know, the two of you are standing out in the hallway, him pushing you up against the locker and kissing you," Kurt said in a teasing tone.

Quinn rolled her eyes.

"So you have kissed him?" Rachel asked with wide eyes.

"No, he pecked me on the cheek," Quinn hissed.

"Yes, while rubbing his groin against you and feeling you up," Kurt continued while laughing.

"No, it wasn't like that at all!" Quinn bellowed slightly annoyed. _Or was it? Am I just being totally ignorant to his signals?_

"So when I took him back to the choir room, I was convinced that he was playing for the, uh, the non-opposite team…"

"… but?" Blaine asked curiously raising his eyebrows.

"… but then I heard him humming in the school toilet yesterday..."

Rachel, Quinn and Blaine all looked at him expectantly.

"…while he was peeing…"

Rachel groaned.

"…Édith Piaf's…"

Quinn face palmed.

"…"Milord"."

The four of them looked at each other and then burst into laughter.

"He may be French and all, but that's simply too much!" Blaine bellowed as he wiped his eyes for the tears of laughter.

When they had finished laughing, Rachel asked the waitress for the bill and then turned to Quinn.

"How's the tutoring going, any news there?"

"Well actually," Quinn began and the rest of the party pricked up their ears. "During our last session-"

"Cough, make-out session, cough" Kurt coughed.

Quinn gave him a death stare but chose not to comment upon it. "-I told him about Beth."

Their smiles faded a bit as they knew this was somewhat a tender topic for Quinn to talk about.

"He didn't know about it?" Rachel asked.

"I think he might have overheard something in the locker room, but I don't think he knew all the details, so I told him everything."

"Wow," Kurt said. "You feel close enough to him to do that?"

"Well, it was kind of a sensitive moment. We'd just watched "Sabrina" and he was telling me things about myself that I wasn't ev-"

""Sabrina" as in the Audrey Hepburn-movie?" Kurt asked. "Oh gosh, if he sat through that, he must really love you."

The waitress came with the bill and they all put down a couple of notes.

"My point is, he heard about what I have been through, yet he didn't make a move on me. Usually when guys hear that I got knocked up sophomore year by my boyfriend's best friend, they think I'm slutty or easy or whatever and they immediately try to get their way with me."

Quinn's hand was resting on her chair and Rachel gently put her own hand on top of Quinn's.

"Seriously?" Blaine asked, a little shocked at how the boys at McKinley behaved towards girls. He knew how badly some of them – or one of them – had treated Kurt, but that was because he was different and Blaine figured those Neanderthals were just plain scared. What Quinn was telling him now sounded too crazy to be true.

"Yeah, most of them do..." _Sam didn't, _she thought. _He just complimented me and called me brave. "…_but Gus comforted me when I told him. He calmed me down and he even let me fall asleep on his chest."

"I think most guys wouldn't mind that, Quinn" Rachel said quietly, still resting her hand upon Quinn's.

"No, most guys wouldn't mind the idea of having a girl sleeping on them. But most guys would mind having a sobbing and snoring chick drooling on their shirts." Quinn said as the boys stood up and put on their coats.

"It sounds like he cares about you, but not really in a sexual way. Isn't it possible that he just wants to be your friend?" Blaine asked

"Oh, honey." Kurt said while padding his boyfriend's shoulder.

"Not when you look like Quinn," Rachel said.

"Not when you're a teenage girl," Quinn corrected her.

"What do I know. Kurt and I are going to visit my parents, so we have to leave you two lovely ladies."

Quinn and Rachel stood up and hugged the boys. When Blaine hugged Quinn, he silently whispered in her ear: "If he confuses you so much, then just treat him like you'd treat a friend. Not a gay friend, not a straight friend, just simply a friend."

Then Kurt took his hand and they walked towards the exit.

"Do you have to be somewhere?" Rachel asked.

"No, I can stay a little while longer," Quinn said as she sat down.

Rachel went around the table and sat down, so they were facing each other. They ordered two cups of coffee and paid for them right away.

"I have to admit," Rachel said, sounding a tad nervous. "I was a little disappointed you didn't tell me about you tutoring Gus."

"I know," Quinn said. "I'm sorry, but I knew how it sounded and I didn't like it. And fact is Rachel, I do trust you, but I also expect you to tell Finn most of the things you hear."

"Well yeah, I do, he is my boyfr-"

"Exactly," Quinn interrupted. "And knowing Finn, I'm pretty sure he's going to tell Sam. It seems like they've grown closer."

Rachel suddenly felt a little guilty, remembering that Finn actually had been the one to tell Sam that Gus and Quinn had been hanging out after school.

"I understand. However, I want you to know that if you tell me something and tell me not to tell Finn, then I won't. You have my word."

"Really?" Quinn asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. I like to be friends with you, Quinn. I know we've had our fair share of fights, but I like hanging out with you. So if you want me to keep a secret, I will… even from Finn."

"Thanks Rach, that's really nice of you. And I like hanging out with you too." Quinn smiled.

The waitress came with their coffees and they sat in silence for a while enjoying the warm scent.

"You did a great job at last rehearsal," Rachel said. "I didn't know the song, but it sounded really good.

"Thanks," Quinn said, sipping her coffee as she thought about the last Glee club meeting. Then she remembered how it had ended. _I hope that's not what Rachel is thinking ab-_

"But what happened with you after Sam and Mercedes' performance?"

_Bingo, _Quinn thought. _That's why she told me I could trust her. She may be my friend, but she's still Rachel Berry._

"Uhm, that depends, how much did you see?" Quinn said quietly.

"Nothing really, except you and Gus kind of ran off together. And then it looked like Sam was going to run after you, -"

_Wait, what?  
><em>

"-and then Kurt said something about the two of you meeting Miss P, -"

_Sam did what?  
><em>

"-and the next thing I hear is that you were making out in the hallway."

"Sam?" Quinn asked absentmindedly.

"Uh, no. You and Gus, Quinn. Kurt just said that you had been kissing in the hallway."

"Oh. That. We didn't kiss though,"

"I know you told me that as well like half an hour ago. Seriously what's wrong?"

Quinn sighed and decided that she might as well be frank if the two of them were going to be friends. She might have made peace with Mercedes, but she knew she wouldn't be able to confess to her as she'd been able to earlier. _If I want to stop feeling so damn lonely, I need to quit shoving people away because of my pride._ With that she licked her lips and began to talk.

"The reason why I left the choir room so suddenly was that I was upset…"

Rachel nodded.

"…because of Mercedes and Sam's performance."

"Mercedes told me that you were okay with the two of them. She told me that you had made up."

"We have made up and if Mercedes asks you can't tell her this!" Quinn said seriously.

"O-okay,"

"I don't know why it happened, but when I saw them perform, the way he was looking at her, I felt like somebody had put a knife through my chest." She let a hand go through her curly hair. "I guess it was kind of an anxiety-attack or something. I couldn't breathe and I couldn't think and I couldn't move. The next thing I know I'm standing in the hallway and Gus is hugging me and calming me down."

Rachel took Quinn's hand. "Oh Quinn, I'm so sorry. I wish I'd noticed so I could have helped you."

"Don't be sorry, Rach. I'm fine now. Gus was there for me and it was kind of nice that it was someone who didn't know that much about my, uh, dating history." She smiled at the brunette.

"It sounds like Gus really cares about you."

"I think he does, and I've grown really fond of him."

"I know he might be gay, but if he isn't, do you want to be with him?"

Quinn paused for a moment. "No. I'm pretty sure I don't. However, the problem is that I don't why I don't want to be with him."

"I understand you," Rachel said. "He's going back to France in less than a year and then you're probably never going to see him again."

"It's not that," Quinn mumbled noticing how Rachel's word stung a bit. _She's right. He's only going to be here until next summer. Am I never going to see him again then?_ "It's just that… I'm not sure if I don't want to be with Gus because of, well Gus, or if I don't want to be with him because of…" she paused for a moment, thinking _here it goes._ "… Sam."

"Sam?" Rachel asked a little surprised. "Y-you think that you don't want to be with Gus… because of Sam?"

"I don't know," Quinn cried. "I just get so confused when I constantly see him and Mercedes snuggling up to each other. They look so freaking happy and I can't even bitch about it because Mercedes is my friend!"

"Well, if Sam and Mercedes broke up tomorrow and you wouldn't have to worry about Mercedes' feelings… would you try to get Sam back?"

"No." _Yes I would. _"I don't know." _Liar. Three days ago I said I loved him.  
><em>

"Wow, you really are confused," Rachel murmured.

"Look, can we talk about something else?"

"Yeah, sure."

Quinn took a long sip of her coffee and then asked "So how's it going with you and Finn?"

"It's going great."

"You spent your summer together?"

"Yeah, we just hung out. We're having so much fun with each other. You know after knowing each other for so long, I think we've figured out what annoys the other person so we just, you know, try to avoid that and then we just enjoy our time together."

"You seem really happy," Quinn said as she emptied her coffee.

"We are. It's funny, it seems so serious now that he's 18 and… well, I'll turn 18 in a couple of months. I know I'm still his high school sweetheart, but from December 18th we'll be two grown-ups in a committed relationship. And when we're 30 we might be looking back at these years and say 'oh yeah, were high school sweethearts'," she giggled shyly as she finished her coffee. "I have to go now, I'm meeting Finn later."

"Okay sure."

They grabbed their sweaters and headed towards the exit, when Quinn stopped at the escalators.

"Where are you going?" Rachel asked.

"I think I'm going to stick around, I kind of need to find something."

"Oh, okay then." Rachel hugged her and hurried out to her car, as Quinn got on the escalators.

As she was approaching the first floor, she thought about the brunette's final words as her mind began to wander.

_So if Rachel considers Finn to be her high school sweetheart, who am I going to call my high school sweetheart when I'm 30? Finn is taken so… Puck? God, I hope not. Sam? I'd like to, but he'll probably say Mercedes, so that won't work.  
><em>

She got off the escalator and onto the second one.

_You can't have more than one high school sweetheart… can you? Who the hell goes through high school with just one boyfriend or girlfriend? That's so unrealistic, we are ticking hormonal bombs. Maybe it's just the last one that counts as your sweetheart – Rachel sure seems to think so. Then what if you're single when you graduate, then you don't have a high school sweetheart. Too bad.  
><em>

She reached the second floor and got off.

_I wonder if Mr. Schue had more than one girlfriend in high school besides that awful baby stealing Mrs. Schu-… she's probably not called that anymore. It feels like ages ago that crazy woman contacted me. And her psychopathic sister. I'm so glad Beth didn't end up with them. Hopefully she's happy with Rachel's mother. I can't believe she's already a year and a half. I really want to see her. I think.  
><em>

She stopped as she reached the jewelry department, where she slowly began to examine the large selection of pearls.

_But what would I say to her? 'Hi, I'm your mother. Your father? Oh, he was my high school sweetheart. Well actually no, he was your non-biological-mother's firstborn child's high school sweetheart. Oh, you mean your real father? He is…' what? Zizes' high school sweetheart? Can't be, they aren't together anymore, he's with that junior girl, Maya whats-her-name. 'Oh, you want to know who my high school sweetheart is. Well, I have no freaking clue since I tend to cheat on every boy who loves me!'… maybe Gus? Maybe.  
><em>

She was still completely lost in her own thoughts standing in front of a small Tiffany's department, when she heard a voice call her name.

"Quinnie?"

She recognized that voice immediately. She would have recognized it anywhere.

She looked up and a little blonde girl in a blue coat came running towards her. She jumped into Quinn's arms and Quinn lifted her up and kissed her on the forehead. They both squealed.

"Oh my god, Stacey, I've missed you so much! How have you been?" Quinn asked still hugging the little girl tightly.

"Hmm, okay, but I miss you a lot."

It wasn't until then that Quinn realized Stacey probably wasn't there alone. She put the little girl down, looked up and saw Stacey's two big brothers standing in front of them. One of them looked very happy to see her, the other one looked like he wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it.

Unfortunately for Quinn, it was Stevie who was happy to see her.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>Can you guess which blonde boy a certain blonde girl is going to have to face now? No more pussyfooting, this is it. The story is not over yet though, there'll be plenty more drama! It might just take a different direction from now on.<br>My darling readers, I cannot thank you enough for all of your kind reviews on the last two chapters. I find it difficult to write Judy Fabray, but you guys are so assuring and encouraging! Thank you! I apologize for the slow up-date, I will try and make the next one more rapidly. Especially with the cliff-hanger I've left you with :) Grüss gott!


	15. Favorite Dish

**Chapter 15: Favorite Dish  
>Chapter song: "Bewitched" - Steve Lawrence<br>Time: October**

* * *

><p>AN: In this chapter, there's a refence to the dream sequence from Chapter 12. In case you don't remember it, it might be a good idea to read again (the first few lines in italic) :-)<p>

* * *

><p>"Quinn!" Sam's little brother exclaimed, taking a big step forward and hugging her.<p>

"Hi Stevie," she said, as she couldn't help but smile at the little boy's affection.

She then looked at Sam, regarding his deep green eyes that were staring right back at her. _This is actually the first time we've had eye contact since… July? _She figured.

They were both silent for just one second too long until Sam finally caved in and sighed.

"Hey Quinn."

"Hi." She felt herself casting her eyes downward. _No Quinn, you can't escape him now. Keep that eye contact._ She looked him in the eyes again.

"So, what are you doing here?" He murmured.

"Uhm, I just had lunch with some of the others…"

"But you're looking at jewelries,"

"Oh." _Nice one, Quinn. _"Yeah well, I just wanted to, uh, buy a pearl necklace before I went home."

"Ah, okay."

They were silent for yet another moment.

"S-so, what are the three of you doing here?" Quinn asked.

"We're visiting daddy," Stacey smiled.

"Your dad?" Quinn asked, looking back at Sam.

"Yeah, he kinda got a job here."

"That's great! What kind of job?"

"He's the store manager of the men's clothing department," Sam said, sounding a bit proud.

"Oh really? That's awesome," she said, genuinely happy for them. After all she'd been a big part of their life when the crisis had hit them, so for a moment, she forgot that Sam was her ex-boyfriend. "For how long has he been working there?"

"Like four months or something and he's actually pretty excited about it, I think he enjoys being the boss," Sam chuckled and he was glad to see Quinn smile with him. _I've missed that smile.  
><em>

"Quinnie," Stacey said, tugging at the older girl's green dress. "Sammy's buying us hot chocolate. Won't you come with us?"

Quinn hesitated and looked at Sam. He gave her a small smile and raised his eyebrows as if he was daring her.

"Sure, I'll go with you."

The four blondes went over to the nearby Dairy Queen and found a table.

"Quinn and I will go up and order, you two stay here," Sam said to his siblings.

They went up the counter, and he ordered three hot chocolates and was just about to ask Quinn what she wanted when a thought hit him: _I'm not her boyfriend._ So he just paid for the three hot chocolates and stepped aside.

_Right,_ Quinn thought. _This is not a date, he isn't paying. _She stepped forward and ordered a small soft ice in a cup.

When they got down to the table with the beverages and the ice cream, Sam sat down next to Stacy so he was facing Quinn who sat down next to Stevie. When Stacy saw Quinn's ice cream, she wrinkled her nose.

"Why didn't you get some hot chocolate?"

"I'm not really a big fan of hot drinks," Quinn said, feeling a little childish. "I always burn my tongue."

"Me too," Stevie chanted with his whole face down in the cup.

"Take it easy, Stevie" Sam hollered.

"But why did you buy an ice cream," the little girl kept on going. "It's not summer anymore."

"Well, Stace, ice cream is my favorite dish."

That seemed to satisfy the little girl who shrugged and began blowing on her hot chocolate.

Bus as soon she had said the words 'favorite dish', Quinn couldn't help but glance over at Sam. He was sitting there with a big grin mouthing 'it's not a dish'. She giggled and licked off the piece of ice cream that was on her little plastic spoon.

Suddenly, Sam exclaimed "Stevie take it easy, it's really hot-"

"Ouuuuuch!" the little boy shouted and put down his cup.

"Oh shit," Sam said while Quinn quickly grabbed a napkin and started dabbing the little boy's nose.

"I told you take it easy! Why did you have your whole face down in that thing anyway?" Sam said obviously annoyed.

"Shut up, Sammy, it really hurts," Stevie said as tears began to gather in his eyes.

Quinn put her thumb beneath his chin and turned his head towards her. "Where does it hurt the most?"

"Right here," he said and pointed to the tip of his nose.

She leaned a little into him to study the damaged skin.

_Stevie must have a really good view of her boobs right now…_ Sam thought absentmindedly, before shaking his head a bit. _Sam, stop it! Damn, he's your little brother, she's your ex-girlfriend and you're with Mercedes. You know what you're being right now? You're being a perv, that's what you are.  
><em>

"Oh gosh, you actually got a little burn," she said, sounding worried. Then she picked up her spoon, put a little ice cream at the end of it and held it in front of Stevie's face. "This is probably going to feel a little weird, but it'll help."

She gently dipped the little bit of ice cream on the spoon with her index finger, and then she brushed the little boy's nose with her finger. When she noticed his weird expression, she smiled and said "It'll help, I swear."

Then she put her spoon down and Stevie faced his siblings, very aware of the white substance on his nose. They all laughed for a bit at the burned pale nose, before Stevie turned to face Quinn again. "It did help a little, but now it's just sticky."

She grabbed another napkin and wiped away the ice cream.

"It still hurts, though," he said, looking expectantly up at her.

So she leaned down to his level and gently kissed his nose as soft as possible. Sam could actually feel his mouth drop open when she did that.

Stacy snickered and bellowed "Now do that to Sammy."

Both Quinn and Sam hastily looked at Stacy and then they looked at each other. Their eye contact just lasted for a moment, but Quinn swore it felt like an eternity. Then she looked down and he told his sister to mind her own business.

They had been sitting in an awkward silence for a little while when Stevie asked if him and Stacy could go to the mall playground behind the Dairy Queen.

"Yeah, sure, but stay on the playground, don't go anywhere else."

"Quinnie, will you come home with us and have dinner - you can see our new house?" Stacey asked as she stood up.

"Thanks Stacey, but I can't tonight, I'm having dinner with my mother. I'll come and say goodbye to you guys before I leave though."

The girls smiled at each other, and the two kids walked away.

"New house?" Quinn asked curiously.

"Yeah, we just moved in. I think it's been like two months now."

"Is it big?"

"Nah, it's a pretty small row house, but it's a million times better than the motel. And it's a lot closer to school as well."

"Sam, I'm so happy for you guys."

They smiled at each other.

_This is actually kind of nice, _Quinn mused.

At the same moment her cell phone rang, so she turned on her chair to get to her bag, which was standing on the floor. She picked up her phone.

"Hello?... hi mom… n-… no, I'm not home right now… I don't know, later… at the mall… with, uh-" she rapidly glanced at Sam "-just some friends… oh, okay… no, it's all right mom, I'll be fine… yeah, I'll just order in… sure… okay, have a nice evening… yeah, I'll see you tomorrow… bye mom." She bent down to put the phone back in her purse.

"What was that all about?" Sam asked, mostly out of politeness.

"She just told me that she wouldn't make it home tonight from her business trip…"

_So she's not doing anything tonight? I wonder what she'd reply if Stacey asked her over for dinner now…_

_"…_ I don't know, I have a feeling she's seeing someone."

"Hmm?" Sam asked a little distracted.

"She's been kind of jolly lately and she's constantly going to these really late meetings. And now, her business trips are being prolonged. It seems like she's hiding something and, knowing my mother, that could easily be a relationship."

"Oh. Yeah, sounds weird," Sam said, a little uncomfortable talking about Quinn's mother's love life. To avoid eye contact, he casted his eyes downwards and he couldn't help but notice how her dress had slid upwards a bit, exposing a bit more of her thigh. He swallowed hard. And then he noticed her knees.

"How do you do that?" He chuckled.

"Do what?" Quinn asked, having no idea what he was talking about, as she was focusing on her ice cream.

"Your knees," he said, now laughing. "You're the most graceful person I know, how the hell do you manage to bruise your knees so badly?"

_Why was he looking at my knees in the first place? S_he thought as she began to giggle. "You know, I've asked myself that questions many a times," she snickered while trying to pull down her dress a bit, though she didn't really succeed.

"I'd like to know what it is that you do all day long that gives you so many bruises on your knees… no, wait, I actually don't want to know!" He continued laughing.

"What do yo-… Oh my god, Sam Evans, you are such a perv!" She said, trying to come off as indignant, though she couldn't help but smile.

_You got that right, _Sam mused as he wiped his eyes for the laughter tears.

Quinn gathered the last of her ice cream on the plastic spoon, and then she licked the spoon carefully.

_God. Just the sight of her tongue turns me on, _Sam thought, wishing something would distract him.

"Sammy! Sammy! Look at me!" _There we go._

Quinn and Sam both turned their heads and they caught a glimpse of Stacy at the top of a slide behind the Dairy Queen stall.

"I can see you, Stace. Don't fall down." Sam yelled back at her, chuckling a little.

"God, I've missed them so much," Quinn said looking at the little girl helping her brother up to the top of the slide. "It seems like I haven't seen them in… forever."

"Uh, I guess I kinda owe you an explanation to why I haven't called you since we started school."

" You've been dating Mercedes," she murmured absentmindedly. _Did I just say that out loud?  
><em>

"Uhm, yeah, I have…" Sam said, sounding a tad confused. "Anyhow, my dad has been doing really well at his new job, so he and my mom decided that I should quit at that pizza place."

"So you're not working there anymore?"

"Nope, gave 'em my two weeks' notice the day before we started in school… but I'd been working there for such a short time, that they just let me go," he said with a goofy grin. "And with my dad getting a full income every month, my mom and I just take care of Stacey and Stevie. So that's why I haven't contacted you lately – we don't need a babysitter anymore."

Quinn frowned slightly as his words had hurt her a little. She wasn't exactly sure why.

Sam noticed it right away. _She's always been bad at hiding her feelings, _he thought, looking at her eyes.

"But they miss you like crazy, Q." _And so do I.  
><em>

Quinn looked up at him with a slightly surprised expression. _He called me Q. He called me Q again.  
><em>

And there they were; Quinn Fabray and Sam Evans at the Dairy Queen in the mall. They just sat there on the purple chairs. Him, with his arms crossed on the table; her, with her hands folded in her lap. And they just sat there, staring into each other's eyes.

_Sam, I still love you. Please tell me you don't love Mercedes. _Quinn thought, feeling like the worst friend in the world._  
><em>

_I've got to tell her that I miss her. That's not illegal – she's been a friend of mine since after our break-up. I can tell her that I miss her without cheating or hurting Mercedes, _Sam mused, but he wasn't sure about the very last part though. _Damn it, I can't tell her that I miss her.  
><em>

At last, it became too much for Quinn. She looked down at her hands and inhaled sharply.

"Quinn, I-"

"I've got to go, Sam. It's getting late." She stood up and quickly walked away from her ex-boyfriend, leaving him at the table.

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. _Perfect, Sam. Just perfect._

Quinn went around the Dairy Queen stall and exhaled. _Well, that was mature Quinn. Just walking away from him without even saying good bye. Yep, I've definitely grown over the summer. _She suddenly saw herself sitting up in a tree with a messy hair do and in a little girl's dress, spying on grown-ups dancing. _I'm so Sabrina pre-Paris._

She was shaken out of her thoughts when Stevie and Stacy approached her.

"Are you going home now, Quinnie?" Stacey asked.

"Yeah, it's getting late." _That's right, Quinn, lie to the children as well._

"When are we going to see you again?" Stevie asked seemingly upset.

"I don't know," she answered, truthfully this time, as she pulled both kids in for a hug. "But hey, Sam told me that we live closer together now than before when you were staying at the motel… and since your dad works here now, maybe we'll be lucky-" _Sam_. "-and bump into each other again, just like we did today." She smiled at them, trying to convince herself as well that it wouldn't be too long until she'd see them again.

She then nuzzled Stevie's cheek and kissed Stacey's forehead before descending down the escalators.

As she exited the mall, she pulled out her umbrella, only to realize it had stopped raining.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>And so they meet again. I hope it wasn't too cliché with Stevie and Stacey (I know it was a bit cliché, I'm a clichéish girl). So, in this chapter there were a lot of references to other chapters and a lot of pay-offs. I hope you guys were able to get it all - or at least the important bits :-)<br>And for the dear fuzzywuzzy123: I hope you got your question answered! If not, then think of a certain midnight blue dress with a retro cut à la Saint German (or simply Chapter 3). If it still doesn't ring a bell, then just you wait. There'll be more about the dress and the pearl necklace in an upcoming chapter. Probably not the next one, but an upcoming one ;-)


	16. Perfect Combination

**Chapter 16: Perfect Combination  
>Chapter song: "On The Street Where You Live" – Nat King Cole<br>Time: October**

* * *

><p>Augustin Prideaux was lying on a chaise longue in his blonde tutor's bedroom. He was holding a baseball in his hands, which he would repeatedly throw up in the air and then catch it again. Because of the extraordinary length of his legs, his bright red All Star-clad feet were dangling out over the end of the chaise longue.<p>

"I just don't understand," he said. "You have a driveway and you have a parkway, yes? But what do you do in a driveway?"

Quinn was lying on the bed on her back, facing the ceiling, with her feet where her head should be.

"You park your car," she answered.

"Right. And what do you do in a parkway?"

"_On_ a parkway. You, uh, drive I guess."

"Exactly." He threw the baseball up in the air. "So you park in a driveway, but you drive on a parkway."

"I suppose so."

"You don't think that is strange?"

"Well, I never thought about it before… I guess it's a little odd, but every language has its weird rules."

"I have another one," he said, throwing the baseball up in the air again. "Last week in government class, I say that when a man become president, he oversee the poor. And the teacher say 'yes, that is his job'. So I say 'if that is the American president's job, then U.S.A. is definitely not God's own nation.' Then she give me a detention."

"I don't get it," Quinn said, frowning.

"Apparently in America, there is grand difference between oversee and overlook."

"Wha-… oh, you thought your teacher was telling you that it was the president's job to overlook the poor." She giggled a little.

"Don't laugh, Quinn, it is strange! Why is to overlook something the opposite of to oversee something? How is that logically?"

"Sorry, Gus, it's not logical," she said though still giggling.

She then rolled onto her stomach so that she could see him. As she had expected, he was desperately pulling at his earlobe while only throwing and catching the baseball with one hand. She twirled a strand of her hair around her finger and sighed. Then he noticed that she was watching him.

"_Quoi?_" he asked.

"Nothing," she said with a smile. "It's just that… I don't know, with the baseball and your All Stars, you kind of look like a real American boy now."

"Thank you… I think," he said, raising an eyebrow. They both laughed at that remark. "So, tell me. I know you are not a sport girl-"

"Sports girl or sporty girl – you need to add an extra letter."

"Okay, I know you are not a sports girl. So why do you have a baseball in your room?"

She tried to recall where she had gotten it. "I think my dad bought it for me once. He took me to a baseball game and he got me that, so I could play with it in case I got bored during the game."

"You got bored?"

"I don't remember, it was a long time ago and I was just a little girl. I probably did though, I tend to get bored during those kind of things."

"But you see football games in school, no?"

"Well yeah, I do. I was always present at the football games in sophomore year since I was on the Cheerios, and even though I still don't really get it, I still like to be there. Guess I've kind of grown used to being there during an important game. Plus, I know so many of the players and it's always fun to watch your friends." _I only watch one guy out there on the field, but I don't need to tell Gus that._

"I see. But you and your father are not, uh, you know, you do not speak, no?"

"No, we don't." Quinn said harshly.

"So why is it you keep the baseball?"

"I… I don't know. My father let me down when I needed him the most and I still haven't forgiven him for that. That doesn't mean all our memories are erased, though. He's still my father and I had a thousand wonderful moments with him from when I was a little girl. He may be out of my life now, but that doesn't mean he was never in it."

Gus could he see her jaw clench and unclench, so he decided to change the subject. "What do we listen to now?"

Quinn raised herself up on her elbows and squinted over at her ipod in the docking station, since she couldn't instantly recognize the song, as it was in the middle of an instrumental break. "We are currently listening to…" she tilted her head a bit. "… the album called 'Nat King Cole does My Fair Lady'."

It had become a tradition for the two of them to listen to Nat King Cole whenever they were together.

"Ah, that I have see!" He exclaimed. "Audrey Hepburn, yes?"

"Yeah, Audrey Hepburn starred in 'My Fair Lady'. It's a wonderful movie, I think I've watched it fifty times or something."

"This is a good number for you, then. Nat King Cole and 'My Fair Lady'. Perfect combination," he smiled.

"I guess," Quinn answered. "This isn't my favourite number, though. Would you like to hear my favorite?"

"Yes, very much!"

Quinn got up and went over to the docking station. She scrolled the wheel on her ipod for a bit and then she pressed play.

Soon after, the smooth voice of Nat King Cole swam out of the speakers.

_I have often walked down this street before.  
><em>_But the pavement always stayed beneath my feet before.  
><em>_All at once am I several stories high  
><em>_Knowing I'm on the street where you live._

As he'd done before, Gus quickly got up and grabbed his tutor by her waist. They began swinging around her room to the mellow song.

"I like this," Gus said as Quinn rested her head in the crook of his neck.

"Hmm, it's such a beautiful song," she answered with her eyes closed.

"_Oui, c'est très romantique,_" he murmured into her hair.

They danced close together throughout the song, him enjoying her sweet scent, her enjoying his tight embrace. As the number ended and a slightly more upbeat song came one, Gus looked down at Quinn, but she didn't pull away from him; she just kept her head on his chest.

"Quinn, are you okay?" he asked a little worried.

"Yes, I'm fine Gus, but do you mind holding me for a bit longer?" she said giddily.

"_Bien sûr_," he whispered with a smile upon his lips.

She let go of his hand and draped her arms around his neck, while he tightened his grip around her waist. Standing so close to him, she could feel his heartbeat.

_Wonder if he can feel mine as well._

She let herself daze off for a while, not really sure whether it were her knees or Gus holding her up. She was thoroughly enjoying herself, when she felt his upper arm twitch a bit. That brought her back.

She pushed herself away from him (though just a little bit), so she could look him into his eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"Anything for you, chérie," he whispered back, kissing her cheek.

He kept her company for another hour before she drove him home. In the car on her way home, Quinn thought _I don't know what's going on between us… but if Blaine is right, this is the best friendship I've ever had.  
><em>

She went to bed that night with a smile upon her lips.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading<strong>  
>I've had a rough day and I needed a little QuinnGus-love, thus I wrote this. Hope you like it, I'll update soon enough :-)


	17. A Flower in the Wind

**Chapter 17: A Flower in the Wind  
>Chapter song: "On the street where you live" - Nat King Cole<br>Time: October**

* * *

><p>"Well, we haven't exactly been together yet," Anna said shyly and started pricking in her food with her fork.<p>

"What do you mean, you ha-… Oh," Tina said, realizing what the girl sitting across the table from her had just told her.

The two girls along with Quinn were sitting in the canteen at McKinley High during their lunch break.

"It's not that I don't want to. I just don't know what to do when, you know, we're in the mood…"

When Quinn figured what they were talking about, she completely zoned out, not really interested in talking or hearing about that stuff.

"… I mean, what am I supposed to do with him? Should we just do it in his chair or what or should I ask his mom to help me move him."

_Oh god, _Quinn thought. _Not over lunch. _She was now fully showing off her HBIC-attitude and if Tina and Anna hadn't been completely occupied with the sex talk, they would most definitely have noticed. _Just think about something else.  
><em>

"Uh, Anna you probably shouldn't contact his parents when you're about to have intercourse with their son," Tina said. "I'm pretty sure that would be the biggest turn-off of the century for Artie."

"What did the two of you do when you were together?"

"We… we never actually were together like that. You should ask Brittany though."

"Ask me what?" the tall blonde girl asked, as she approached their table along with her girlfriend.

"Anna wants to sleep with Artie, but she doesn't know how to do it." Tina replied.

"Jeez, Tina, why don't you just tell the whole world?"

The Asian girl shrugged and Brittany and Santana sat down between Tina and Quinn when Brittany answered

"It's okay, you can totally ask me about that. Sometimes I carried him to his bed, sometimes we did it in his chair, sometimes in the kitchen, sometimes with Santana watching…"

Tina and Anna both looked at Santana indignantly, who just shrugged and angrily said "Whatever."

Then she noticed Quinn was seated at the table as well right next to her. The blonde girl was currently stirring a spoon around in a small cup of pudding. She had dreamy look in her eyes and was humming quietly.

"What's up with Q?" Santana asked.

The other girls just shrugged.

The Latina tilted her head. "Quinn?"  
><em><br>Are there lilac trees in the heart of town?  
>Can you hear a lark in any other part of town?<br>_  
>"Quinnie…" she said, waving a hand in front of her.<br>_  
>Does enchantment pour out of every door?<br>No, it's just on the street where you live…  
><em>  
>"QUINN!" Santana hollered.<p>

"What?" Quinn replied angrily, feeling sulky from being ripped out of her daydreaming.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing's wrong, what are you talking about?"

"You looked like you were drowning in rainbows and candy," the Latina spat.

"Oh," Quinn said, feeling a bit embarrassed as she realized what she'd been doing. A small smile escaped her pink lips.

"I know that look," Santana smirked. "Who are you thinking about?"

"No one…" Quinn said shyly.

"Gus?" Anna quickly asked.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "It's not like that…"

The four other girls all squealed a bit and then they giggled loudly.

Sam and Mercedes came up to their table carrying their trays.

"What's up?" Mercedes asked, referring to the girls' childish behaviour.

Sam immediately looked at Quinn, who was sitting there smiling and blushing. _Gosh, that smile. Wonder what's making her so happy._

"Oh, nothing," Tina replied, knowing not to talk about Quinn's new lover in front of her former lover and his new lover.

Unfortunately Brittany wasn't as alert and said "We're talking about the French boy… I still can't understand his name."

"Just call him Gus, Britt." Quinn chuckled lightly.

_Oh. That's what. _Sam thought a little disappointed.

They all giggled some more, and Mercedes and Sam sat down between Anna and Tina, placing their trays in front of them.

"So yesterday," Santana began. "I was skipping math and as I walked by Miss Pillsbury's office, I saw her and Mr. Schue sitting really close together and talking intimately."

"Oh San," Quinn pleaded. "We don't want to hear about that."

"Fine, I'll spare you the sleezy details and save those for Brittany later. Anyway, as I decided to eavesdrop, I found out that the theme of the Winter Dance is going to be 'opposites attract'."

All the seven students started speaking at once, commenting on the theme.

The winter dance was barely a month away and the second biggest event at McKinley next to prom. Every year the school would announce a theme for the party and the students would have to dress according to this theme, as well as the decorations would match.

"Are you supposed to dress contradicting or?" Tina asked.

"They didn't say…" Santana answered.

"I hope not," Quinn murmured frowning a bit. "I already have my dress." _But I still need to buy a pearl necklace._ _I need to remember that._

"That would kind of blow," Anna agreed.

"I don't know guys," Mercedes said in her always optimistic being. "I think it sounds kind of cool. I mean, Sam could put on some white rich kid suit and I could put on some stereotypical black ghetto dress and we'd be picture perfect for that theme… plus it'd be really fun finding the costumes." She looked over at Sam with a big smile on her face.

"Sounds awesome, 'Cedes" he answered before kissing her on the lips.

_Girls want to know I stay so skinny? _Quinn thought. _Just make sure to have lunch with the glee kids. Your appetite will disappear right away._

She turned her head to look away from the happy couple and she saw Gus sitting at the table next to them. He was surrounded by a group of girls _from the drama club? _Quinn wondered. He was currently reciting some play, and she guessed it was in French judging from the intense looks from the girls.

When Sam pulled away from his girlfriend, he immediately glanced over at Quinn, who was looking somewhat sad. He felt a little guilty, thinking _I probably shouldn't do that in front of her, I hate seeing her like that. Poor thi-_… then he realized she wasn't even looking in his direction. He followed her eyes and saw Gus at the next table obviously flirting with a bunch of girls.

_That douchebag,_ Sam mused. _You just don't do that to a girl like Quinn. How the hell can he let those girls be all over him, when the prettiest girl in the room is sitting at the very next table? _He then shook his head and looked down at the food on his tray. _No, Sam. Not the prettiest girl in the room. The prettiest girl in the room is your girlfriend no matter what. You've got to stop thinking like that… _

He glanced up and noticed Quinn was just pushing the food on her plate around with her fork, looking very lonely. _Has she eaten anything while I've been sitting here? I don't think so. And she's skinny enough as it is, she really shouldn't lose any more weight. That guy doesn't have a good influence on her. What an idiot. _He shook his head again and continued eating.

...

"_Ce monde__, tel qu'il est fait, n'est pas supportable__._"

Gus cleared his throat and rapidly looked up at the girls surrounding him. Yep, they still looked enchanted, so he continued.

"_J'ai donc besoin__ de la lune, ou du bonheur__, ou de l'immortalité__, de quelque chose__ qui soit dément peut-être__, mais qui ne soit pas de ce monde__._"

The girls of the drama club all whined as he dramatically exhaled after finishing the sentence. Two of them were in Gus' government class and as soon as they discovered that there was an exchange student from France amongst them, they had begged him to read aloud from Camus' "Caligula". Gus himself wasn't much into that heavy stuff, but he had to admit that he enjoyed the attention.

Feeling on top of the world at that moment, Gus took a look around the cafeteria and quickly spotted his favorite American. She was currently sulking, lazily moving her food around on her plate. Gus frowned and excused himself to the other girls, who all objected to him leaving, but he wasn't really paying attention to them.

He stood up and walked over to where Quinn was sitting with Anna, Mercedes, Sam, Tina, Brittany and Santana. Without her noticing it, he got behind Quinn and silently leaned down close to her ear, and then he whispered:

"Bonjour ma fleur." ["_Hello my flower"_]

Quinn gasped loudly and dropped her fork, at the sensation of his hot breath on her neck.

All the glee clubbers looked up at the French guy, but before Quinn could turn around, he had kissed her on her cheek, and she instantly knew who it was.

"Pourquoi est-ce que tu es triste?" he whispered softly, still holding his head next to hers. ["_Why are you sad?_"]

Quinn looked over at Sam, who, as their eyes met, immediately looked down at his tray, looking rather pissed. _What an idiot, _he thought.

Quinn knew she was the only one there who spoke French besides Gus, but still she kept her voice low, as she said,

"Pour une raison quelconque, je ne peux pas supporter de voir mon copain précédentes d'être heureux avec sa nouvelle petite amie." She scooted back a little on her chair, so that she could rest her head on his shoulder, though still not facing him. [_"For some reason, I can't bear to see my ex-boyfriend being happy with his new girlfriend."_]

Gus glanced at Sam who looked a bit flushed at the other end of the table.

"Ah, je comprend. Veux-tu venir avec moi?" [_"Oh, I see. Do you want to leave with me?"_]

She thought about it for a moment, but then remembered how she'd promised Mercedes that she was okay with their relationship. "Non, ce sera semblent suspectes." [_"No, that'd seem suspicious."_]

"Bon." He turned around and took a step away, then hesitated and went back to his tutor, this time just putting his hands on her shoulder instead of leaning down.

"Quinn," he said.

She tilted her head back and looked up at him.

"You very should eat," he said pointing to her almost full plate. "You are very skinny and if you do not eat, one day you will blow away in the wind, no?"

She smiled at him and then he leaned down and softly whispered in her ear:

"Comme une fleur dans la vent." [_"Like a flower in the wind."_]

Quinn giggled and Sam clenched his jaw at the other of the table. _I hate when he does that.  
><em>

Gus stroked Quinn's cheek and said "I will see you in glee club," before leaving the canteen.

The party at the table was silent for a moment until Brittany, furrowing her eyebrows, said:

"Is he like the king of Europe or something?"

They all chuckled except for Sam, who whispered "He's not the king of anything," just low enough so only he himself could hear it. Or so he thought.

"Super hearing, Sam," his girlfriend whispered next to him closing her eyes.

_Man, this day couldn't get any worse. _Sam thought rolling his eyes_  
><em>

"No Brit," Quinn said, deciding that she wouldn't just let this one pass, but actually educate her friend this time. "He's not the king of Europe. Actually there are several kingdoms in Europe, so most of the countr-"

"But I don't get it," the former cheerleader complained, leading to Santana patting her in a friendly manner on her back. "Why does he keep calling you his queen?"

Quinn looked at her for a moment and then she realized what Brittany meant. "Oh, no sweetie, that's just how he says my name. If I lived in France, that's how they'd pronounce my name." _Well, not exactly but I'm not about to explain Brittany the rules of pronunciation in French.  
><em>

Santana put an arm around her best friend and rested her head on Brittany's shoulder, while Anna gently poked Quinn in the ribs, saying "Though I'm pretty sure you kind of are his queen."

Quinn smiled feeling better than before Gus had approached her. She then began eating her lunch.

And if anyone had been looking at the blonde haired boy across the table, they would've seen a boy looking ever so defeated.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>So, Sam misunderstands why Quinn is sad - I hope that came off clearly. I'm sorry for not updating for a while, but school hasn't been very nice to me! Thank God the holidays are coming up.<br>I don't know if American high schools actually do winter dances - they do in my country, and it kind of fitted well with this story. I apologize if it's too unrealistic, just try to think of one of the Harry Potter movies. Don't they go to a winter dance in of them? Please tell me if anything is unclear or misleading - I'll answer your questions with the next update. :-)


	18. Discturners

**Chapter 18: Disc-turners  
>Chapter song: "Without You" - Lerner &amp; Loewe (performed by Marni Nixon)<br>Time: November**

* * *

><p>Quinn was walking down the hall towards the choir room, when she heard someone call her name. Gus came running towards finally catching up.<p>

"You walk fast," he panted, his cheeks unusually red.

"I've been standing at my locker forever, Gus" she snickered watching her French friend's flushed face. "You look nice today, by the way."

He was wearing a white shirt buttoned all the way up and tugged down in his pants and for once he had combed his dark hair backwards instead of to the side. _Makes him look five years older, _Quinn thought, enjoying the view.

"Thank you, you do too."

Quinn looked down at herself. For once she had just put on a grey t-shirt and black jeans. Even though she had accessorized with some golden bracelets and she had spent some extra time curling her hair to perfection that morning – and even though her jeans were pretty tight – she knew she still looked very casual compared to her usual outfits. She then giggled at his invalid compliment and picked up her walk towards the choir room.

"Thanks Gus, but seriously, you do look good."

He smiled but kept his eyes on the ground walking next to her.

"Any special occasion?"

"You will see," he answered teasingly.

Most of the other students were already in the choir room, and the girls and Kurt all made cat calls when Gus entered. His face turned even redder then than when he had been running, Quinn noticed amused. He was walking in front of her, so when he sat on the first row, she followed him.

Unfortunately Quinn hadn't noticed Puck sitting on the second row, so just before she sat down on a chair, he smacked her hard in the behind. The slap-sound was louder than Quinn could even imagine and it kind of hurt. She angrily turned around only to see Puck's goofy grin as he hollered:

"Damn Fabray, you should really wear pants more often."

Quinn could feel her cheeks burn and was just about to smack Puck in the face, when Finn distracted her by saying:

"What the hell Puck, you have a girlfriend." Finn was sitting on the third row and hade made Puck turn around to face him. He knew Puck didn't mean anything by it, but it always got to him when Quinn and Puck had a moment. Then he could feel that little old flame of jealousy spark in him again, even though he was head over heels with Rachel.

"Yeah, I do," Puck sighed sounding a little tired. "But she's my first girlfriend who isn't actually a part of the glee club. So you can't blame me for letting the old Puckzilla run a little loose in here."

Then Puck turned around again to face Quinn and shrugged apologetically. He saw the familiar Quinn Fabray-fire burning in her hazel eyes, as she looked like she was about to castrate him, but that completely disappeared when he apologized. She sat down next to Gus, trying to pull her t-shirt a little further down.

_Must be that French guy infecting, _Puck mused. _Frenchmen don't have any temper._

Sam had been watching the entire incident and even though he had gotten annoyed with Puck as well at first, he suddenly realized he had clear view of Quinn's behind as he was sitting on the second row all the way to the left, and she had been standing all the way to the right. _Those sure are some damn tight pants, _he mused as if in a trance, when Puck and Finn had been arguing.

Mr. Schue entered the room and got in front of the piano, but before he could say anything, Gus had risen from his chair.

"Mr. Schue? I will like to audition today."

All heads turned to Gus.

Their teacher looked at him confusedly. "That's okay Gus, you don't have to audition, we pretty much just let in everybody who wants to be a member."

"Yes, but I speak to Rachel earlier," he continued. "And she say to me that audition always make a good impression."

"That's true, we should always encourage furthering creative outlets," Rachel said, eagerly nodding her head.

_Why hasn't he told me? _Quinn thought as she regarded the boy next to her.

"Okay, fine then," Mr. Schue said. "The stage is yours, Gus."

He took a few steps towards the piano while wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans.

"Okay, I like to sing this song for Quinn."

Gus saw two blondes frowning when he said that. One was Quinn, the other was her ex-boyfriend.

"Remember when we talk about "My Fair Lady"?" he asked looking directly Quinn.

She nodded her head hesitantly.

"_My Fair Lady"… _Sam mused. _Didn't we watch that once, back at the motel?_

"I once saw a porno movie called "My Fair Lady"," Puck remarked. Artie and Mike giggled, but Rachel quickly hushed them down.

"Me too," Brittany chanted.

"So I go home to _mes parents américaine_, and I discover they have My Fair Lady soundtrack. Not Nat King Cole's, but with Audrey Hepburn sing."

_Not Audrey singing, it's Marni Nixon, _Quinn thought, but she sure as hell wasn't going to interrupt her friend in the middle of his audition, knowing his nerves were playing with him. However as soon as Gus had said 'Audrey Hepburn', Quinn could hear Kurt beginning to say something, so she turned around and mouthed 'no, you don't' with as bitchy an attitude as she possibly could pull off. Kurt was immediately silent.

Gus, who hadn't noticed the exchange of looks and mouthing, gladly continued "I then find an old, uh, what do you say, disc-turner? _Non, on dit pas ca. Comment dit-on 'un tourne-disque' en anglais_?"

"Uhm, a record player." Quinn answered still feeling a little nervous.

"Yes!" Gus exclaimed while violently tugging at his earlobe.

_His English gets a little worse when he's in front of a lot people, _Quinn thought.

"So I find a record player and I listen to all songs from "My Fair Lady". Not just Nat King Cole." He grinned at her. "And I like this song. It is not _to_ you Quinn, but it is _for_ you," he said emphasizing the two prepositions.

He then pulled a piece of sheet music from his shirt pocket and gave it to Brad at the piano. Then he began to sing with a deep almost opera-sounding voice.

_"There'll be spring every year without you._  
><em>Glee club still will be here without you.<em>  
><em>There'll be fruit on the tree.<em>  
><em>And a shore by the sea.<em>  
><em>There'll be crumpets and tea without you."<em>

A couple of the glee kids were now laughing; some at his lyrical joke, some at his accent.

_"Art and music will thrive without you._  
><em>Somehow Keats will survive without you.<em>  
><em>And there still will be rain<em>  
><em>on that plane down in Spain,<em>  
><em>even that will remain without you.<em>  
><em>I can do without you."<em>

Then he began walking around on the stage making grimaces that fit with the song.

_"You, dear friend, who talk so well,_  
><em>You can go do football, Cheerios and AV."<em>

Now everybody in the choir room, including Quinn, was laughing with him.

_"They can still rule the land without you._  
><em>And McKinley will stand without you.<em>  
><em>And without much ado we can all muddle through without you."<em>

Being the dedicated "My Fair Lady"-fan she was, Quinn smilingly mouthed 'you brazen hussy' at Gus, who noticed it and winked at her. He then went over to her, offered his hand and began swinging her around with dance moves matching the lyrics.

_"Without your pulling it, the tide comes in_  
><em>Without your twirling it, the earth can spin<em>  
><em>Without your pushing them, the clouds roll by,<em>  
><em>If they can do without you, ducky, so can I<em>

_I shall not feel alone without you_  
><em>I can stand on my own without you<em>  
><em>So go back in your shell<em>  
><em>I can do bloody well<em>  
><em>Without you"<em>

He had picked Quinn up in his arms during the last verse, and after he'd finished his song, he carried her back to her chair and put her down. Then he returned to the stage to receive his applause, which was grand.

"I know it is not your favorite, Quinn," he said smilingly. "But it should be your mantra."

Quinn wasn't sure how many of the students understood what he meant, but she sure did and nodded. When he sat back down she gave him a big hug and held him tight.

"Thank you so much," she whispered into his ear, pressing her cheek against his.

"_De rien, chérie._"

When she pulled away from him, she noticed a certain blond guy watching her. When their eyes met, he asked her something. Because the other glee kids were still commenting on Gus' performance, there was a lot of noise in the room and Sam didn't say it very loudly, but Quinn understood perfectly.

"What's your favorite song from "My Fair Lady"?"

She parted her lips, just about to answer, when Finn interrupted her, yelling:

"Okay, Gus' performance was really cool and it's great with the oldies lately, but now we kind of need something a little more upbeat."

While saying that he jumped down to the drum set and began playing a fast rhythm. Mercedes quickly got down from the second row and began singing an r'n'b-song and then Rachel joined in. Because of all the confusion, Quinn and Sam lost their eye contact. The next time she looked at him, he was looking at Mercedes and the next time he looked at her, she was dancing with Gus.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>Sorry for the update hiatus; I've been writing this huge assignment the last three weeks and I denied myself internet acces to avoid getting distracted. I have written a few chapters though and I'll upload them as soon as possible. The next chapter is very long and things will take a turn!<br>I hope you haven't completely given up on this story even though I'm a slow turtle. If you are still reading this, please drop a review - a word or two is just great - so that I can be sure. Thank you and a very merry Christmas!


	19. When it Sizzles

**Chapter 19: When it Sizzles  
>Chapter song: "For Once in My Life" - Stevie Wonder<br>Time: November**

* * *

><p>"But I've always wondered," Quinn said. "What kind of animal is Goofy?"<p>

"A dog." Gus answered.

They were both sitting on the floor with their backs against the chaise longue.

"How do you know?"

"Because in France, we call him 'dingo'. You know, like the wild dog."

"Oh. I wonder what translator was responsible for that."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, anyone who's just the slightest bit acquainted with the English language will know that the name 'Goofy' has absolutely nothing to do with dogs. So who ever came up with the French name just assumed Goofy was a dog and called him Dingo."

"Why is it wrong? He is a dog. So it is okay for Frenchmen to call him a dog name, no?"

"No," Quinn replied. "Goofy isn't a dog. He can't be."

"Why not?"

"Because he's Mickey's best friend."

"So?"

"Gus, can't you think of any other dogs in Mickey's life?"

"I do not know so much abo-… oh, you are speaking about Pluto."

"Exactly. How can Goofy be a dog, and Mickey's best friend, when Mickey has a dog as a pet?"

"But dog is man's best friend?"

"Yeah, but I doubt Goofy would like it if Mickey put a leash on him and told him to sleep in the dog house."

"You are right," Gus said, scratching his neck. "_Très étrange._"

Quinn nodded her head. "_Très étrange_ in deed."

Then there was a knock on the door, and it was opened, revealing Judy Fabray on the other side.

"Quinnie, are you-… Oh, hi honey," she said. "I didn't know if you were home or not."

"Hi mom." Quinn knew her mother would like to see her get up from the floor (and away from that uncanny European boy), but Quinn was comfortable on the floor… next to Gus. "You're home early."

"Yes well, I got off a little earlier than usual."

There was a moment of silence, before Quinn remembered what she had forgotten to do so far. "Oh mom, this is Gus."

At his cue, the French boy stood up and walked over to Quinn's mother.

"Augustin Prideaux," he said putting out his hand.

"Judy Fabray," Judy replied and took his hand a little hesitantly.

Then Gus gave her a big toothy grin, as he said with his best American accent "I can now see where Quinn get her beauty."

Suddenly Quinn saw her mother turn 180 degrees. Her face went from anxiety and angst to complete and utter joy. "O-oh," she giggled like a school girl. "Well, aren't you the charmer."

_God, she's so intolerant towards other people until they compliment her… then she's practically ready to kiss their feet, _Quinn thought. She then snickered at the idea of her mother kissing Gus' bright red All Stars.

"Would you like to stay for dinner, Gus?" Her mother asked with blushing cheeks, still holding his hand.

"Very much, yes please thank you." Gus answered and kissed Judy's hand.

_Jesus, _Quinn mused.

"All right then," Judy chuckled. "It'll be a couple of hours, and I'll come up and get you." She smilingly left the room, closing the door behind her.

Gus turned around looking somewhat proud.

"What was that all about?" Quinn asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Your mother is enchanting. How old is she?"

"Euw, Gus!" Quinn whined. "Way too old for you!"

"No no no, not that." He began to laugh and sat down next to Quinn again. "I just think she is very young to be your mother."

"Maybe she is. I don't know, she was 26 when she gave birth to me, but of course she was barely 21 when she had Frannie." _Though that's still four years older than I was when I had Beth_, Quinn thought. "But I guess she is pretty young compared to your mother?"

"Yes, compared to _ma mère américaine_, but not my _maman_."

"Your real mother?" Quinn asked. "Is she young?"

"Yes. Very young and very beautiful… like you," he gave her a charming smile.

"Compare me to your mother again and I'll break your nose," Quinn said, playing deadly serious.

"Pardon," Gus laughed. "But she is very beautiful. And so are my sisters."

"How many have you got?"

"_Cinq_."

"Five sisters! God, no wonder you came here, that must be hell." Quinn said, thinking about how much she used to fight with her own sister. They didn't fight anymore, but they didn't talk anymore either.

After she had gotten married with that fanatic Christian preacher, she had grown even fuller of herself and then she had completely shunned Quinn, when she discovered that her little sister was pregnant. Judy was still in contact with her, but as with her father, Quinn had no intentions thereof.

"No," Gus said. "They are very very sweet girls and very clever girls too."

"What are their names?" Quinn asked, detecting something in his voice.

"Corinne is the oldest. She is 15 and very beautiful, she has lots of boys."

Quinn couldn't help but smile. _Did he just call his sister slutty? _"Lots of boys?"

"Yes, you know, lots of boys who like her."

"Oh," Quinn said still smiling.

"Then there is Thérèse, she is 13. Pauline and Margaux are 8, _elles sont fausses jumelles_. And then there is little Annabelle, she is only 4 and, how do you say, cute as a button."

Gus was still smiling, but Quinn had discovered what it was she could hear in his voice. _Sadness._

"You miss them?"

"Very much, yes. But it is okay because I can speak to them over the telephone and that helps. It is worse with Paris."

"Paris?" Quinn asked a tad confused.

"Yes, I miss Paris terrible."

"Terribly. You miss Paris terribly."

Gus nodded.

She knew she shouldn't correct him in a situation like this, but that was just how they spoke to each other.

"But when you say you miss Paris… Gus, are you _un_ _parisien_?"

"_Oui, bien sûr_." Gus said looking a bit confused at her indignancy.

"I had no idea. Here I've been blabbering on about my summers in Paris, and you live there! Why haven't you told me?"

"You have not ask." He shrugged.

_Wonder what else he's been keeping from me that I haven't asked him about._ "Where do you live?"

"_Le septième arrondissement_. In a wonderful neighbourhood. I have lived there my whole life and I miss it so much. You see, Quinn, when you live in Paris, Paris become a part of you. You have Paris in your blood. So when you leave, you feel like you miss a part of yourself."

Quinn just nodded and put her hand on top of his. She didn't feel like that about Lima at all, in fact she couldn't wait to get out of there, but having spent a little time in Paris, she had a pretty clear idea of what Gus was talking about.

"I'm sorry Gus," she whispered softly and put her head on his shoulder. They sat like that for a while, until Quinn got an idea. She grabbed his hand and pulled him up on his feet.

"Maybe I can help you," she grinned. She pushed him onto her bed and went over to her TV. "I know it's not even half as good as the real thing, but I figured we could watch "Paris when it sizzles", if you want to."

""Paris when it sizzles"? I know it, but I have not see it. Is it any good?"

"It isn't all that famous, actually. You see, it kind of flunked at the box office. It's an untidy mess of a movie, but it's got humour, Parisian environment and Audrey Hepburn in a love scene, so I think you'll enjoy it," she winked.

"Ah, you know me so well," Gus replied.

_I sometimes get the feeling that I don't, though I'd love to… _Quinn mused at she got back on the bed.

She lay down next to him, but he quickly wrapped an arm around her, and as if they'd been doing nothing else for their entire lives, she snuggled up to him, resting her cheek on his chest.

"I'll try not to fall asleep on you this time," Quinn snickered.

"Don't. I like it when you sleep on me." Gus said softly

A moment of silence passed by.

"…but if you fall asleep, please try not to drool," Gus then said chuckling.

Quinn gently slapped his stomach, and then the movie began

…

Quinn felt a soft hand caressing her cheek and a warm breath in her hair, as she woke up.

"Quinn, are you awake?"

"Hmmm," Quinn groaned and stirred a bit.

"I hate to wake you up, but your mother is not happy when she see us, no."

That made Quinn sit up. "Has she been up here yet?"

"No, not yet. But I can smell food, so I am afraid."

"Oh, I understand. Sorry I fell asleep again." She wiped her mouth, but luckily she didn't feel anything wet. "Was I out for a long time?"

"No no, only ten minutes, I think."

"I'm sorry I keep doing that though. I haven't even been that tired today."

"It is no problem. You look beautiful when you sleep. And you are very hot,"

"Excuse me?" Quinn said defiantly.

"You know, when you sleep, you are very hot. I am never cold because you are so hot." Gus replied innocently.

"Oh," Quinn laughed. "You mean I'm warm, when I'm sleeping."

"Warm, hot, it is the same thing, yes?"

"No, well yeah, but, not really."

She was still smiling at his choice of words when Judy came knocking in the door.

…

At the dinner table, Quinn was once again surprised at how well Gus and her mother got along. They were chatting and laughing, him complimenting her cooking skills, her giggling like a school girl at his flirting manor. Quinn wasn't even participating in the conversation; she just sat there and stared at her mother and her best friend, not being able to believe her eyes. _Did I just call Gus my best friend?_

Her mother was completely swallowed up by the French boy, but Gus would every once in a while cast a glance across the table over at Quinn, looking for a smile. And even though she found her mother slightly annoying, she couldn't help but smile back.

"So Gus," Judy Fabray smiled. "Tell me why you force my little Quinnie out on the roads late at night whenever you're here."

Gus looked confused as Quinn shot her mother an angry glare. "She wants to know why you don't drive."

"Oh," Gus sighed relieved. He'd been fearing Judy was referring to something completely different. "I do not have a driver's license. You see in my country, you have to be 18 to drive. And I turn 18 when I move here, so that is why. But do not worry, Quinn is always so careful in the car," he said, smiling to assure Judy of her daughter's safety.

Quinn couldn't help but let out a big grin as Gus said that. Remembering how he had told her the exact same thing almost three months ago, though he hadn't been able to describe the problem with any verbs, she was now so glad with the progress he had made with his English. _I spend so much time talking with him, that I sometimes forget where he started out._

"I do take a temporary driver's license though," Gus continued. "I will get in one week."

"Well, that sounds great. Do you have a car?" Judy chirped.

"Mes parents américaine have a car, but they will not make me borrow. They think I will ruin it," Gus said a little ashamed. "Only one time they will make me borrow and that is November 25th." He was now obviously winking at Quinn, who immediately looked up at him, suddenly interested in the conversation.

"What happens on November 25th?" Judy asked, looking back and forth between her daughter and her guest.

"Th-the winter dance," Quinn whispered, keeping her eyes locked with Gus'.

"Oh. Well, are the two of you-"

"Actually that is why I am very glad to finally meet you, Mrs. Fabray," Gus interrupted her. "For long time I have want to ask you if it is okay that I take Quinn to the winter dance at McKinley." Gus said now offering Judy the sleaziest smile Quinn had ever seen.

_Oh my god, he just asked mom if he could take me to the winter dance. Oh my god, he cannot possibly get anymore cliché, _Quinn mused as she slowly shook her head in disbelief.

"Well," Judy began. "Usuallly I wouldn't encourage this, but I remember how important all dances were to me back when I was in high school. And knowing my little Quinnie cares almost as much about etiquette as I do, and since you are offering her a ride, I can't see anything wrong with you taking her. You have proven yourself to be quite an impressive young man, Gus."

"Is that a yes?" Gus asked nervously.

Judy regarded him for a couple of seconds, before answering "That's a definite yes, dear boy."

Then Gus turned slightly to face Quinn who was still starring at her friend in disbelief.

"_Dans ce cas, chérie_: Will you like me to take you to the winter dance?"

"Y-yes, of course" Quinn gasped, a huge smile breaking out on her lips.

She had an extreme urge to hug him, but that wasn't quite possible with their current seating positions at the Fabray's dining table. Quinn then did something that she usually wouldn't be caught dead doing, but she figured she'd had already been kissed by Gus numerous times, she had already been dancing with Gus numerous times, hell she'd even been sleeping on top of Gus numerous times. So she did what she felt like doing. Quinn leaned a bit down in her chair and gently nudged her own knee against Gus' knee, her lower leg affectionately stroking his. _Thank god for his goofy long legs, _Quinn thought. _Otherwise I had been pushing my leg at nothing but empty air and I would have been forced to go over and hug him. Mom would hate that… maybe I should do that._

She didn't mean anything sexual by touching his leg; she just couldn't help herself because of the happiness and excitement she felt at that very moment.

Gus looked surprised for a moment before smiling at Quinn. He then looked a bit uncomfortable and Quinn couldn't really blame him, since her mother was sitting at the end of the table, so she withdrew her leg with a teasing smirk.

Gus and Quinn stayed downstairs the entire evening, eventually moving into the living room, where Judy popped open a bottle of wine.

_She must be enjoying this too,_ Quinn mused as she watched her mother get comfortable on the couch.

They talked about a lot of different things, mostly Quinn and Gus telling Judy about school, Gus entertaining the girls with his observations of Americans, and the three of them exchanging Paris memoirs.

It was half past ten before Gus said that he'd better head home now, much to Judy's sorrow.

_So much for not having boys over at this hour on school nights_, Quinn thought, amused by her mother's indifference.

At the door, Gus kissed Judy's hand and said he was looking forward to seeing her again, making the older woman blush and giggle. Quinn just rolled her eyes with a smile on her lips and went out to the car.

They were both silent on the drive towards Gus' house, Quinn daydreaming about the upcoming school dance and Gus relaxing after the hours of playing prince charming. After 20 minutes of silence, Quinn pulled over on the street outside Gus' little house.

…

Sam was lying wide awake in his bed thinking about school, girls, the future, girls and football, when he once again heard noise from the next door neighbor. Usually the road upon which he was living with his family was silent as the grave after 9 o'clock, but every once in a while he would hear a car pull over and then drive away again shortly after a lot later than 9 o'clock. Tonight he heard that car again, so he decided to go downstairs and look out the window.

He leaned in over the kitchen zink and squinted through the slightly dirty windows. _Is that… is that Quinn's car? _

He then put on a sweater and wearing nothing but that and his pajamas, he snuck outside.

…

Quinn and Gus sat silently in the car, the atmosphere incredibly tense.

"Quinn," Gus finally said, trying to catch her eyes, though he didn't succeed. "I have to go inside now."

She just nodded and reluctantly he stepped out of the car.

He only got a few feet up the path towards his house, before he heard a car door slam and a soft voice.

"Gus, wait…"

He had barely turned around before Quinn jumped into his arms. Luckily Gus had hoped for a reaction like this, so he gladly swung her around three times, before finally putting her back down on the ground. He then looked her deep in the eyes and pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly.

"Thank you so much," she whispered into his shoulder. "I can't wait."

They stood like that for a moment, before she pulled away and looked him into the eyes again. Then Gus bent down and kissed her cheek, murmuring into her cheek rather than her ear:

"_De rien, ma chérie._"

He then skipped up to his house, and Quinn stood still watching him. _I can't believe he's taking me to the winter dance._

Then she turned around herself, only to see a shadow approaching her car. She stepped a little closer, and then the light of a lamp-post hit the shadow's golden hair.

"Sam?" Quinn said confused. "What are you doing here?"

Sam was wondering if she'd be able to see his cheeks blushing from jealousy, when he snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing her call his name. He took a few steps closer and so did she, so they were now standing on each side of her car.

"Uh, I live here." He said a little too sharply. "The question is what you're doing here."

"What, here? Oh that's right, you told me that you'd moved to a row house closer to school! I had no idea it was here though, here where Gus lives," Quinn exclaimed remembering their conversation at the Dairy Queen. She was way too bubbly to notice Sam's current state of mind. "Actually I was just dropping off Gus, we've been-"

"Yeah, I could see that. He's been at your place until now?"

"Uhm, yeah," Quinn answered quietly, this time slightly taken aback by his unfriendly tone of voice.

"You don't think that's a little late on a school night?" Sam snarked.

"Well, we've just been dining with my mother, and…" Quinn paused, tilting her head. _How dare he judge me like that? _"Why am I explaining you this?"

"I don't know, maybe because it's a little weird you're driving your boyfriend home at 11 pm."

"Frankly, it's none of your damn business, Sam." Quinn spat angrily. _And he's not my boyfriend, though right now I kind of wish he were._

"It is my business 'cause it's my siblings you're waking up, when you have make out sessions out on the street in the middle of the night." Sam said a little too loudly.

_Make out sessions? What is he talki-… oh, our hug. He saw that? _"Oh, grow up, Sam. Stevie and Stacey are heavy sleepers. You're forgetting I used to be their babysitter. Fact is the only thing that's going to wake them up, is their immature brother yelling at his ex-girlfriend for absolutely no reason at all!" Now Quinn was almost yelling as well.

"Whatever Quinn. I just thought you'd learned your lesson, you know being around boys, after your experience in sophomore year…" _Oh fuck, I did not just say that._

"Oh my god," Quinn whispered almost inaudibly as she cringed. "I cannot believe you just said that."

She then went around to the other side of the car, so she was standing with her back to Sam and opened the car door.

"You weren't there, Sam. You don't know what happened." _Except I've told you. And cried on your shoulder too many times about Beth. You should know this. _

She then turned around and gave him a death stare. "I don't know what your problem is, but don't take it out on me and don't, under any circumstances, take it out on Gus." She then got in her car and drove off panting slightly.

And Sam just stood there, sighing heavily while thinking w_hy can't I just keep my big mouth shot?_

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>And thank you so much for all the reviews, 'twas truly wonderful to see read your kind words :-) I promise I'll speed up the process!<br>For Annie, I'm sorry it's dragging out. I kind of have the story figured out, but I just keep thinking of funny, romantic, awkward, whatever scenarios which I have the most urgent need to write down; thus the many chapters. However, I will try and control my imagination and my fingers... they just tend to cooperate sans my rationality!


	20. Potato Sacks

**Chapter 20: Potato sacks  
>Chapter song: "Mash Potato Time" – Dee Dee Sharp<br>Time: November**

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><p>I realize I haven't properly explained the rules of a winter dance: all the students attend, but the seniors are the last to arrive. The guys are there first and then the girls arrive (often in limos or party busses – some even in horse carriages). You dance, drink and have fun, and then your date takes you home or to an after-party. Thus Gus being Quinn's dates means that he gets to take her home – that's sort of the idea of winter dances in my country (over here it's always very cold, so the ride home is very cozy and snuggly, if that's a real word).<br>Oh yeah, as you've probably figured; I'm not American so what I've written about Thanksgiving/shops closing because of Thanksgiving, traditions etc. is based on the limited knowledge I get from watching Hollywood movies ;-)  
>And I probably should mention: FINCHEL ALERT IN THIS CHAPTER – it has something to do with the storyline in the next chapter.<p>

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><p>Over the next few weeks Quinn and Sam completely ignored each other. No more longing stares, brief exchanges of words or awkward tension. They simply denied each other's existence. The glee boys didn't notice anything other than Sam was a little more quiet than usual, but of course the girls all knew something was wrong, even though Quinn refused to talk about it. She was too angry with Sam to forgive him, yet too concerned with Mercedes' feelings to bitch about what he'd said.<p>

So on the last Wednesday of November, Quinn had hurried out to her car after her final class and quickly driven off without wishing her friends a happy Thanksgiving. She should've known that she wouldn't get off that easy.

She hadn't been home for more than half an hour before Rachel called her. Quinn had an idea what the short brunette wanted to talk about, but she picked up anyway. They small-talked for about 15 minutes, until Quinn finally caved in and told Rachel of her unhappy experience with Sam in front of Gus' house.

"…and then I told him to leave me and Gus alone and then I drove off."

"My god," Rachel said, sounding surprised. "I can't believe the two of you are still having lovers' quarrels after being apart for such a long time."

"It wasn't a lovers' quarrel, Rach, it was just Sam being a jackass." Quinn spat. She didn't mean to take it out on her friend, but she was still feeling pissed.

"Well, he kind of has a point, doesn't he?" Rachel asked carefully, afraid of awakening the HBIC in Quinn."

"What do you mean?" Quinn asked rapidly

_Too late, _Rachel thought. "Sam thinks that you're a good girl, Quinn. So you can't blame him for being a little shocked seeing you standing and making out on the street in the middle of the night with the new guy at school."

"First of all, I _am_ a good girl;" Quinn hissed loudly. "Secondly, Gus and I were only hugging; and thirdly, for the love of God, stop calling Gus 'the new guy'. He may be the newest addition to The New Directions, but he's been here for nearly half a year. By this time last year, Sam and I were doing lots worse things in public then Gus and I do behind closed doors – and you never called him 'the new guy'."

"Look, I wasn't trying to offend Gus. All I'm saying is that Sam has always been the stereotypical protective big brother-kind of guy, right?"

"Right," Quinn agreed a bit more silently this time.

"And fact is that you and Gus have grown very close pretty quickly. Maybe it wouldn't bother Sam so much if you were dating. But driving around with a boy in the middle of the night, making out with a bo-"

Quinn cleared her throat, and Rachel immediately corrected herself:

"-_hugging_ a boy in the middle of the night, a boy who isn't your boyfriend? It sounds a little rebellious."

"You're beginning to sound like my mother," Quinn snorted.

Rachel chose to ignore her snarky comment. "He still cares for you Quinn, and you can't be mad at him for that. Even if he does say it in a stupid way. He's just concerned about you."

"Maybe you're right. But he shouldn't have said those things to me."

"No, but he's a boy and like all boys, he's only a few evolutionary steps away from the gorilla."

Quinn giggled a little.

"No seriously, just look at guys like Karofsky and Azimio. Except for a little less hair, is there really any difference?"

This time, Quinn laughed and Rachel quickly joined in.

"Thanks Rach, that cheered me up."

"No problem. By the way, me and some of the other girls are going to the mall this afternoon and you're welcome to join if you want to."

"I can't, I have to take my car to the workshop, I'm afraid it's broken."

"Can't your mom drive you?"

"No, she's at work."

"Well, Tina's picking me up, and maybe she can pick up you as well."

"That's okay, ignoring Sam is exhausting, so I think I'll just stay at home and relax. Maybe later tonight?"

"Can't, I have date with Finn afterwards."

"Okay, say hello to him from me then."

"I will. Happy thanksgiving, Quinn. I'll see you Friday,"

"Yeah, bye." Quinn answered absentmindedly. She was too busy thinking about what Rachel had said about Sam to think about the winter dance two days ahead.

Shortly after, Tina pulled up in front of Rachel's house, to take her to the mall. They met up with Mercedes when they arrived and began ascending the escalators. Since the winter dance was only two days away and all the stores would be closed the next day because it was Thanksgiving Day, they had to buy their dresses today.

"I can't believe we're out so late," Tina said. "There probably won't be any dresses left."

"There'll be plenty of dresses left," Mercedes assured her. "Don't worry, we'll find the right dresses, we'll buy them, we'll celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow and on Friday, we'll get our groove on at our last winter dance." They were both smiling now, but Rachel wasn't.

"Are you ok?" Tina asked.

"What? Oh yeah, I'm fine… I'm just a little worried about Quinn."

"Did you find out what's wrong with her?" Tina asked as they entered the dress department in the women's clothing store.

"Uh yeah," Rachel said hesitantly, glancing over Mercedes. "It's nothing serious, I think she's just having a rough at school and then with her mothe-"

"It's Sam, right?" Mercedes asked as she sighed.

Rachel casted her eyes downward, but that was response enough for Mercedes.

"He's been acting weird as well these last couple of weeks. A month ago I practically begged him to stop staring at Quinn, but now it's like he refuses to look at anything but the floor whenever she's around."

Both Tina and Rachel were surprised to hear Mercedes say that. They of course had talked about Sam and Quinn, but they had no idea that Mercedes was aware of the tension between the two as well.

"Y-you asked him to stop looking at Quinn?" Rachel asked cautiously.

"I didn't know what else to do."

They all continued leafing through the party dresses, all feeling the awkward silence.

"Do you think I'm doing the wrong thing?" Mercedes suddenly asked.

The two other girls both looked a little confused, so she continued.

"Dating Sam, do you think I'm doing the wrong thing, like keeping Sam and Quinn apart?" Her voice became very small, as she said the question out loud, that she'd been asking herself for months now.

Tina and Rachel shared a quick look.

"Sam might still be confused about his feelings for Quinn," Tina said. "But there's no doubt he loves you, Mercedes. He's always smiling when you're around and the looks he gives you, they're so affectionate."

"You shouldn't let this bother you so much," Rachel continued. "As it is now, Sam is your boyfriend – your boyfriend who has invited you, and not Quinn, to the winter dance. The two of you may not last until you're 30, since we're still just high schoolers, but don't let that ruin what you have now. Just enjoy the attention he's giving you. You don't owe Quinn to break up with him."

"Okay," Mercedes smiled. "Now, let's go and try on some dresses!"

Mercedes knew exactly what she was looking for, so she was the first to find something fitting. It was a black dress, a little daring, but it suited her well. And as she told the other girls, she just needed the right accessories, and she'd be "ghetto to go."

Tina found a beautiful kimono inspired silk dress in a red fabric with a pattern made with golden threads. She then bought a tie with the American flag upon it, so she and Mike could show off their contradicting inheritance; his tie symbolizing their American childhood and adolescence, her dress symbolizing their Asian genes. It was a little far-stretched, but she didn't really take the theme seriously.

Neither did Rachel, who told them that she'd wear ballet flats instead of heels, so that her and Finn's heights would be the opposite-part. Tina found a yellow dress and showed it to Rachel. The skirt was floor length and the bodice was plastered with small yellow pearls. It was a strapless gown with a sweetheart cut and as it turned out, it fitted Rachel perfectly.

"Guys, I can't wear this," she said, as she stepped out of the fitting room.

"Oh. My. God. Yes, you can Rachel. You can definitely wear that," Mercedes exclaimed, as she gave her shorter friend the elevator look."

Tina just grinned and asked her to turn around.

"I can't show up wearing this; it's just the winter dance, not prom." Rachel said, as she did a twirl.

"Who cares, it's our last winter dance and we're seniors. You look totally awesome Rachel; you cannot not buy that dress." Tina almost yelled.

"A-are you sure?" Rachel said though she still sounded pretty unconvinced.

"YES!" Both girls exclaimed simultaneously.

"Plus," Mercedes continued. "You kind of look like a modern Belle from "Beauty and the Best"."

"Thanks, but please don't tell Finn that. Then he'll just dress up as the beast!"

"Talk about opposites attract," Tina chuckled.

All three of them laughed and finally Rachel nodded.

"Okay, I'll take it."

She went back into the fitting room and 15 minutes later, the three girls strolled out of the store, each with a shopping back containing a dress.

As Tina and Mercedes headed towards the exit, Rachel told them that she had a date with Finn and that he'd meet her there. The three of them said their goodbyes, and shortly after Rachel saw her tall boyfriend walk towards her.

He greeted her, as he bent down to kiss her cheek.

"I just found out that Breadstix closed early today because of Thanksgiving tomorrow," Finn told her.

"That's fine," Rachel said. "We can just dine her."

…

"You know, I'm kind of nervous about tomorrow," Finn stated while chewing on his food.

"Don't be," Rachel said. "My dads already love you and they're looking forward to seeing you. They say that this Thanksgiving will be like a welcome ceremony for you to the family."

Finn chuckled. "They really dig this stuff, huh?"

"Are you crazy, they go totally overboard. That's why I asked you if you'd take me out tonight: my dads get so caught up in their Thanksgiving preparations that the house gets unbearable to be in!"

They both laughed, as Rachel continued "You're sure your mom is okay with you not spending it with her?"

"Oh yeah, she says it's fine. She told me now that I'm 18, I should be able to choose for myself. And since Burt has invited all his brothers and their children to dine with him, Kurt and my mom, I know she won't be lonely. Plus I really want to do this Rachel, spending Thanksgiving with your family, you know, for you."

Rachel reached across the table and took his hand. "Thanks Finn, it means a lot."

They smiled at each other and continued eating their meal.

"Oh, did you get your dress for the winter dance?" Finn asked after a while.

_He almost sounds excited, _Rachel mused as she grabbed the bag next to her chair. "I did. Not really sure what I think about it, though." She frowned slightly as she grabbed the material and pulled a slip of it out of the big.

It was a part of the bodice she was holding up, and Finn's eyes went a little wide. "Wow, that's uh… shiny."

Rachel's smile faded immediately, as she quickly tugged the dress back in the bag. "I-I know," she said quietly. "It's too much. I think I'm going to return it and find something more… plain."

Finn noticed the change of tone in his girlfriend's voice, but he wasn't sure what the reason was. "Why? I'm sure you'll look really pretty in it. Besides I think the clothing department is closed by now, and it won't be open until Saturday, and by then, well, it'll be too late."

"I can always find something in my closet," Rachel murmured sadly.

"No, don't do that. Come on, you've got a beautiful dress in that bag right there, why would yo-"

"Because Finn, I can't come in a dress like that," Rachel interrupted, her eyes brimmed with tears.

Finn didn't really know anything about dress codes for girls, so he simply shrugged, looking a little confused.

"I don't look like the girls in the magazines. Not even close." She was looking down at her plate, trying to hide her tears from her boyfriend.

"I th-"

"People will laugh at me if I show up in a dress like that. I shouldn't be wearing it; I'll be arriving at the dance with girls like Santana and Brittany and Anna and… and Quinn."

"Rachel!" Finn exclaimed, taking both of her small hands in his. "Stop it. Why are you always this hard on yourself? You know I think you're beautiful. You're much prettier than Anna, Santana and Brittany… and Quinn as well."

"You don't mean that," she mumbled, though a small smile escaped her lips.

"Yes I do, and you know it. Fact is, even if you showed up wearing a potato sack, I still wouldn't be able to take my eyes off of you." He reached up and wiped her tears from her cheeks. "I love you, Rach."

She raised her gaze to meet his eyes and gave him a warm smile. "I love you too."

"You know, if you like me to, I wouldn't mind picking you up on Friday so when can arrive at the dance together."

"No no, this isn't prom. It's an unspoken rule that your date must not see you until at the actual dance."

"I know, but I have kind of seen your dress," he grinned.

"…but not on me, have you now?" she asked teasingly.

"No, I haven't, and I can't wait. I know you'll be the prettiest girl in there and I'm so gonna show you off to all the other dudes!"

She got up from her chair, leaned over the table and gave him a big kiss on the lips. "I can't imagine my life without you," she whispered as she rested her forehead on his.

"You don't have to. I'm right here, Rachel. I always will be."

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>My gosh, you guys! I cannot tell you how thrilled I am with your reviews. Some of you like Gus, some of you hate him, some of you think I'm stalling, and one of you (bless your soul) likes the slow progress. It's so good to read the different opinions! And please keep 'em coming; the positive comments are so lovely to receive and the less positive ones show that you care about the story - so whatever you write, thank you :)<br>The next chapter will be the winter dance. I think it's going to be long so I may have to split it up in two parts – please don't hate me for that! I'm not sure though, time will tell.


	21. Winter Dance part I

**Chapter 21: Winter dance part I  
>Chapter song: "Do You Love Me?" – The Contours<br>Time: November**

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><p>Because of Thanksgiving, Quinn's car was still at the work shop, so her mother had to drive her. Judy Fabray stopped her car in front of Rachel's house. It was Friday afternoon and the dance was only a few hours away.<p>

"Okay honey, do you have everything?"

"Yeah, I think so," Quinn said as she looked out through the windshield at the big house in front of her where she could already hear music flow out from the first floor.

"Sounds like your friends are already having plenty of fun,"

"Relax mom, we are not going to drink anything. It's just us girls."

"Okay, I trust you. I'm a little sad I won't get to see you in your dress though," Judy said as she stroke her daughter's cheek.

"There'll be plenty of pictures taken, don't worry. Plus you saw it when I tried it on in Paris."

"I know, but I'd still…" her mother looked a bit anxious for a moment, but then smiled again. "Never mind. Have fun tonight, sweetie."

"Will do. Bye mom." Quinn kissed her mother on the cheek and opened the car door.

"Remember to tell Gus that he has to have you home at midnight,"

"He knows, mom, you've told him a billion times." She stepped out of the car, but before she could close the door behind her, her mother yelled:

"Oh, and Quinnie, be sure to have your picture taken with Gus as well!"

"Bye mother." Quinn closed the door behind her, at walked up the little path towards Rachel's house.

As expected, all the glee girls were bustling around Rachel's room in a thick fog consisting of perfume and hairspray. They had Santana's ipod plugged in, so loud r'n'b-music was filling the room as well.

When Quinn walked in, Mercedes was dancing on Rachel's bed, shaking her behind to the rhythm, Anna was sitting on the same bed trying to paint her toenails (which turned out to be difficult as Mercedes was shaking the entire thing), Tina was curling her hair in front of the mirror and Brittany was applying blood red lipstick to Santana's lips. Nobody seemed to notice Quinn, so she just sat down beside Tina in front of the bedroom mirror and pulled out her ponytail to comb her hair.

Rachel was in the bathroom. She had just put on her dress and though it did fit very well, she still felt uncomfortable.

_I can't do this,_ she thought. _They'll laugh at me. Okay, maybe they won't laugh at me, but they'll pity me. I'm not going to do this. I can't let them see me in this; I can't let Finn see me-…_ She then looked at her reflection in the mirror. _Wait, what was it he said?_

"I could wear a sack of potatoes, and he still wouldn't be able to take his eyes off of me," she mumbled standing in front of the bathroom mirror. She then brightened up and took a second look down herself.

_I can do this, _she smiled and turned around to exit the bathroom.

The first to notice Rachel was Quinn.

"Oh, Rach," she exclaimed as she stepped over to the shorter girl. "You look stunning."

By then, all the other girls were also looking at Rachel

"Damn girl!" (Mercedes)

"You look really pretty," (Anna)

"Berry's got back!" (Santana)

"I told you it was perfect." (Tina)

"I-it's not too much?" Rachel asked as she swayed a bit, making the skirt swing back and forth.

"NO!" All the other girls yelled in unison.

"I'd better go change now," Quinn said, grabbing her bag and entering Rachel's bathroom. Just as she'd closed the door behind her, there was a loud knock.

"Hurry up, tubbers, I need to brush my teeth before we go," Santana yelled from the other side of the door.

"What you need is to wash your mouth out with soap, but…" Quinn whispered, and then continued somewhat louder "… I'll be quick."

She stripped down to her underwear and pulled out the dress from her bag. She held it up in front of her before lightly sniffing at it. _Smells like Paris, _she thought, as she put it on. It had to be buttoned up in the back, so she exited the bathroom, clutching the dress to her breasts, so it wouldn't fall down.

"Can someone button me up?" She asked and stepped over to Brittany who as usual looked the least busy. She felt a pair of cool hands on her warm back, as the ditzy blonde made the bodice sit tighter around her torso. Afterwards she stepped over in front the mirror, and the other girls quickly gathered around her.

"Oh Quinn, that's beautiful!" Tina exclaimed as she ran a hand down the side of the gown. "Where did you get that dress?"

"St. Germain," Quinn replied. When the other girls all shrugged, she continued "A shopping area in Paris."

"You look so grown up," Rachel said, smiling at Quinn's mirror reflection.

"Yeah, you could easily pass to be 21," Anna agreed, standing behind Quinn.

"Guess we know who's buying the booze for the after party," Santana yelled from the bathroom. She'd quickly stuck her head out to check out Quinn's dress, but had just as quickly decided that her own reflection was far more interesting.

"I'm not going to the after party," Quinn yelled back.

"What? Why not?" The other girls wanted to know.

"Well, my mother is having some trust issues these days, so I can't come waddling in at 4 in the morning, smelling like a bar. Besides, when I asked Gus, he didn't really want to go to the after party and he's my ride home… and even if he weren't, I wouldn't really feel like going without him."

"Oh come on, Quinnie, it'll be fun!" Santana said, stepping out of the bathroom.

"Yeah, for you guys, 'cause you will all be trading saliva with your respective dates at that time." Quinn snarked.

The other girls all laughed and continued preparing themselves, as Quinn stayed in front of the bedroom mirror, grabbing the curling iron from her bag.

_It's like I'm missing something, _she thought as she regarded herself. _I've forgotten something. _She then put the curling iron down and reached up to remove her Eiffel tower necklace. As soon as it had come off, she realized what she had forgotten.

"Pearls," she whispered as her eyes widened.

"What?" Tina asked, standing next to Quinn.

"The pearls, oh my god, I've completely forgotten to buy a pearl necklace."

"What are you talking about?" Tina repeated as Mercedes approached them upon seeing Quinn's frightened eyes.

"This dress needs a pearl necklace; I knew it as soon as I bought it. I've been meaning to buy a pearl necklace, but when I went to the mall the last time, I-…" _I ran into Sam and ended up eating ice cream with him, but I can't tell that to Mercedes_, Quinn mused. "…I forgot about it."

"Why didn't you come with us and Rachel on Wednesday?" Tina asked.

"I'd forgotten I needed it," Quinn said, thinking _I'd forgotten because I was so busy worrying about Sam_.

"Look, maybe Rachel has some." Mercedes suggested.

"Has what?" Rachel asked, stepping over to the three girls.

"Do you have a pearl necklace?" Quinn asked. "I need a pearl necklace to go with this dress."

"Well yeah," Rachel said, opening a drawer. "But only fake ones," She showed the blonde her pearls.

They were all oversized and _very Rachel Berry, _Quinn thought and internally laughed humorlessly.

"I-it's okay," Quinn said trying to sound optimistic. "I did bring my pearl earrings."

"And you still look drop dead gorgeous," Tina said, putting her hands on Quinn's shoulders.

"Yeah, and boys never notice our bling anyway," Mercedes grinned.

The three other girls laughed, but Quinn just smiled. "I know, I just… I just wanted the look to come together," she said as she put on her pearl earrings and continued curling her hair.

_I can't believe I've been so busy with Sam that I forgot to buy that stupid necklace, _Quinn mused. _And for what? He's not even my boyfriend and I haven't spoken to him in weeks because of that night in front of Gus' house. He was a douche though. Okay, technically he did have a point, but still. He shouldn't be talking to me like that. He's not allowed to care for me. _Quinn unconsciously raised her chin a bit, as she looked herself in the mirror, standing with the curling iron. _…but do I really mind him caring for me?_

The girls were barely done getting ready before they heard Rachel's dad yell "Picture time!"

Suddenly the loud music was drowned out by squealing as each glee club girl tried to find her shoe, her lipstick, her earring, her hair clip, her mind.

"Girls, you need to get down here now, before the limo comes!" Her dad yelled again, and the squealing became even louder, though mixed with laughter.

A few minutes later, the party came skipping down the stairs, still squealing and laughing, and placed themselves against the white wall. They had an individual picture taken, then a picture with Santana and Brittany, one with Rachel, Tina, Anna, Mercedes and Quinn, one with Brittany, Anna and Tina, a few extra shots of Rachel alone (since it were her dads), a picture of Santana, Brittany and Quinn, a picture of Rachel, Quinn and Mercedes – Quinn in the middle, thinking _this will be the picture of the girl who got knocked up at 16 and her two best friends whom are currently dating her two ex-boyfriends _– and at last a group shot of all seven girls.

As soon as the last picture had been taken, they all fell together, laughing and chatting loudly, touching each other's dresses and admiring each other's hair. Then they heard a loud honking-noise, and Rachel immediately chirped "The limo is here!"

They said goodbye to Rachel's dads and giggling went out in the limo. Although they didn't drive off right away, as four of the girls had forgotten something semi important and was forced to run back. The last one was Rachel, who had forgotten to kiss her dads goodbye in the entire disturbance, and as soon as she was back in the vehicle, they drove away.

They had ordered a bucket of virgin magharitas along with the limo, so as they approached McKinley High for their last winter dance, they toasted in the green drinks.

"To all the talented young people of the New Directions…" Rachel began

"… and all the not so talented nobodies…" Santana continued.

"… and all the idiotic bullies…" Tina said.

"… and all the helpless teachers…" Quinn grinned.

"… and all us bimbo cheerleaders…" Anna murmured.

"… and to the Warblers, Vocal Adrenaline, Jane Addams Academy, Aural Intensity, Haverbrook and, uh…" Mercedes said

"… and to us, right?" Brittany asked.

"Yes, Brittany, to us." Rachel smiled. "To the future,"

And thus, they all drank.

…

Sam was standing at the punch bowl, adjusting his cream coloured tie when Finn approached him.

"You look nervous," he grinned, clapping the blonde guy on the shoulder.

"I kinda am, actually. I'm standing her alone in a way too white suit. Aren't they supposed to be here by now?" Sam asked anxiously.

"Nah, you know how girls are." Finn said. "Think about how long it takes for one girl to get out of the door… now multiply that by seven."

"Actually by eight," Mike said as he came over to them. "Tina counts for two; she's in a league of her own, you seriously wouldn't believe it!"

"Then you've obviously never taken Rachel on date," Finn laughed.

"Mercedes isn't that bad," Sam interjected. "She doesn't even ask me if I think she looks beautiful, she just struts down the street like she owns it." He smiled to himself, thinking about his girlfriend's swag.

"I hear she's going to look fabulous tonight," Finn said. When Sam gave him a confused look, he continued: "She showed Kurt her dress yesterday and according to him, it was fabulous."

"Great," Sam smiled, not really knowing what to think, as Kurt's sense of fashion wasn't that obvious to him.

"By the way, why isn't Kurt coming tonight?" Mike asked.

"The Dalton Academy is throwing their annual Christmas party tonight and I think he misses some of his old friends, so he went there instead." Finn answered.

The two other boys were nodding when they spotted Gus wheeling Artie around a few yards away. Finn called them over.

"Damn, Sam, what are you wearing?" Artie cried when they got nearer.

"Opposites attract, remember?" Sam grinned, spinning around. "Mercedes is wearing black tonight."

"That is politically incorrect, no?" Gus asked chuckling.

All the guys laughed with him, except for Sam, who annoyed asked the French boy what kind of opposite he was supposed to be.

"Nothing," Gus shrugged. "Quinn have already her dress, so we do not dress up. We just dance and have fun." He smiled a little triumphantly at Sam, knowing the blonde's history with Quinn.

"You got lucky, man. Tina bought me this," Mike said, holding up his American flag-tie, "and told me it would go perfectly with her dress, so I'm kind of dreading what she'll show up in."

"A tie isn't so bad," Artie said. "Anna wanted me to dress up as Quasimodo so she could be Esmeralda."

Once again the boys all laughed.

"So what did you decide to dress up as?" Sam asked wonderingly as the boy in the wheel chair was wearing a perfectly normal tuxedo.

"Nothing. We agreed that our difference in height would be enough as opposites," Artie shrugged.

"Same with me and Rachel," Finn said. "Except, you know, the other way around."

They were laughing again when Puck approached them, Maya by his side, though they immediately stopped upon seeing Puck's outfit.

He was wearing a regular black tux, like all the other guys except for Sam, but at the end of the sleeves, Puck was wearing gloves. Gloves with fur. Not only that, but on top of his head was a headband with long brown ears attached to it. To top it all, Puck's nose was painted black with what one could only assume was eyeliner. If it wasn't because Maya was looking rather cute in a small black dress, a cat ears-headband and eyeliner-whiskers on her cheeks, somebody would have beaten the mohawk'ed guy up right away.

"So, where're your dates?" Puck asked, trying to sound intimidating.

"Uh, they're probably on their way. T-they're all going together in a limo," Finn stuttered, trying to contain his laugh. The other guys were simply staring at Puck in disbelief and moro.

"'Kay, well, I'll see you around." Puck said as he turned around.

"Nice tail," Mike mumbled and then all the guys loudly burst into laughing. Puck turned around and gave them a death stare, before Maya pulled him away from them.

"Christ, he looks stupid," Sam said, as he wiped his laughter-tears away.

"And that's coming from one of the Bee Gees," Artie yelled, and they all laughed again. This time so much that Finn fell over.

"God, I'm so glad we're all dating seniors," Finn said. "Senior girls would never force their boyfriends to show up in a dog costume."

"Plus, they're ten times prettier," Artie murmured, as he pointed towards the door where the glee club girls had just entered.

Brittany and Santana were in the front, Santana wearing a blood red gown with matching horns on a headband on her head, while Brittany was sporting a baby blue puffy dress and white angel wings.  
>Behind them were Anna and Tina, then Rachel and Mercedes and in the very back came Quinn.<p>

The boys immediately all dropped their jaws at the sight of their girlfriends looking stunning and began walking towards them. Santana quickly pulled Brittany towards the dance floor, to avoid being in the middle of the clash of the couples. Mike rolled Artie over to their girlfriends, Finn went over to Rachel and Mercedes came skipping over to Sam, saying "Man, Sam you like fly in that tux, we are so gonna…"

Sam knew she was saying more, but he wasn't listening. He hugged her, but couldn't keep from looking over her shoulder to what had been stealing his attention as soon as she stepped into the gym: Quinn.

Quinn was wearing a sleeveless midnight blue silky dress with a low boat cut neckline. The wide straps were set broad apart, hanging on the farthest points of her shoulders and the very top of her arms. It was tight fitting right above her hips, emphasizing her thin waist, while the skirt part of the dress was looser, the brim dancing around her knees with each step she took. Her golden hair was formed in soft curls bouncing down her back, some of it pinned up in a casual yet very elegant way, showing off her neck. He watched as the French boy went over to her and hugged her, complimented her and kissed her cheek. She then giggled, so her hair bounced even more and the brim danced wildly. _Oh man, Quinn looks…_

"… like a goddess," Sam mumbled absent-mindedly.

"What?" Mercedes asked, still standing in his arms.

"Oh, uh, nothing." He swallowed hard. "You look awesome tonight."

"Thanks, so do you." She pulled away and regarded her boyfriend. "You sure you okay?"

"Yeah, just, a little too much punch," he said, trying to pull of his goofy smile.

"Okay, then let's go get our picture taken." She grabbed his hand and they walked over to the photographer.

As they waited in line, Sam looked over his shoulder. He couldn't help himself. Quinn and Gus were headed over to the photographer as well, his arm around her waist, whispering in her ear; her holding her hand in front of her mouth trying to hide away her big smile.

_She always does that, _Sam mused. _But her smile is so sweet._

…

"… and he even wear a tail!" Gus whispered in Quinn's ear.

"Oh dear god," she giggled. "I can't believe she actually got him to dress up as a dog. He's so whipped."

"Whipped? She whip him? How do you know?"

"What?" Quinn blinked confusedly at her date. "Oh, I wasn't… whipped doesn't exactly mean… you know what, never mind, Gus. I'm not going to educate you tonight, 'cause tonight I'm not your tutor."

"_C'est vrai, chérie._ Tonight you are my beautiful, beautiful date. The most beautiful girl of all proms."

"And apparently I'm here with the biggest _charmeur_ of all time," Quinn smiled, imitating her mother's tone of voice.

At that very moment, she noticed Samcedes further up in the line. They were snickering at each other, caressing each other.

_He looks ridiculous in that suit, _Quinn thought, as the familiar feeling of jealousy was bubbling in her stomach. _Not tonight, _she mused. _I am not going to let them ruin my last winter dance._ She looked back at Gus, who was currently checking her out.

"What?" she asked smilingly.

"You just… you are perfect, you know?" he said as he stroked her cheek.

Quinn's cheeks turned rosy as she casted her eyes downward. Feeling a little uncomfortable by the French guy's impressive compliment, she decided to change the subject.

"I actually had a little crisis earlier on. You see, I really wanted a pearl necklace to wear with this dress, but I'd completely forgotten to buy one. Though I didn't realize this until a few hours ago, so I had to arrive _sans collier de perles._"

"But, I don't understand," Gus stated as he tugged on his earlobe. "Does it matter if you wear pearls?"

Quinn snorted at her own childish behavior. "Well no, not really."

"Then what is the matter?"

She tugged a loose strand of hair behind her ear, feeling a little embarrassed. "Sometimes a girl just needs her pearls, that's all."

As she said the last sentence, Sam and Mercedes walked past the couple as they had had their picture taken. The two blondes' eyes locked for a split second, before Quinn felt Gus' hand slip into hers.

"_C'est bon?" _He whispered in her ear.

"Yes," Quinn sighed. The tension between her and her ex-boyfriend was already tiring her, and the evening had barely begun.

…

As soon as the band started to play a slow song, Finn took Rachel's hand and pulled her towards the dance floor. He placed his hands on her back as she placed hers on his chest, having difficulties reaching around his shoulders.

"You look so beautiful tonight, Rach, it's unbelievable."

"Thanks Finn," she smiled. "I was kind of scared I'd be overdressed, but then I sa-"

"-saw Puckerman," Finn finished snickering.

They both laughed and Rachel rested her head on his chest.

"I'm so glad you didn't force me to dress up," Finn murmured.

"Oh, I would never force you to dress up!" Rachel exclaimed.

Finn looked down at his girlfriend, arching an eyebrow, just as she looked up at him.

"Okay, I would force you if I'd had an idea," she admitted.

"I know you would," Finn chuckled.

"Actually, I did kind of have an idea for tonight."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, but…"

"But what? What was it?"

"Well, Tina and Mercedes said that I looked like Belle from "Beauty and the Beast" wearing this…" she said, fidgeting a little with the skirt of her dress.

"Oh yeah, that's right! I wondered where I'd seen that dress before."

"… and since I'd be the beauty tonight, we figured you could be the be-"

"The beast!" Finn finished once again, this time sounding very excited. "You should have told me, that would have been totally awesome."

"No Finn. You may look cute as a zombie, but I'm not attending the winter dance with an animal looking freak, who roars instead of communicating," Rachel said firmly. "It's Maya who does that."

Once again they both laughed at the idea of Puck in ears, paws and tail.

A few yards further away, Gus spun Quinn around and caught her again, swaying back and forth. They were in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by other students.

"You dance like my grandfather," Quinn giggled when she noticed the weird looks some of the footballers were giving them.

"And? I think you like," Gus answered teasingly, as he dipped her.

Quinn couldn't help but laugh and squeal a little. "I do like it in my bedroom, yes, but I didn't know you'd do it in public as well!"

He looked into her eyes with a snicker and held her still for a moment. "Exactly what are we talking about, Quinn?"

She looked confused for a moment, until she realized what she'd just said. "Oh, you dirty dirty pig!"

Laughingly, he pulled her in for an embrace, as they kept on swaying.

The song ended, and the couples who weren't too caught up in their partners, like Quinn and Gus, clapped a bit.

"Want to sit down?" Gus asked, pulling away from her, as a more upbeat song began. When Quinn nodded, he took her hand and led her to a table. "I will get some punch for us," he said as he left her at the big round table.

Quinn felt a little at unease sitting alone at the dance, but luckily Finn and Rachel soon approached her, each with a glass of punch in their hands.

"Hey you two!" She said happily. "Please sit down; I don't want to look like a bench warmer."

The brunettes did as she had said and Finn took her in for a moment.

"You look really pretty, Quinn."

"Thank you. You look really handsome," she replied with a smile. "Are you having fun?"

"I think everyone besides Noah is having fun tonight," Rachel said, glancing towards the Jewish boy standing on the dance floor looking somewhat crestfallen.

"You know, I almost feel bad for him," Quinn began.

"Don't," Finn said. "He wouldn't go through all this if he didn't count on getting lucky tonight."

Rachel slapped her boyfriend on his arm, frowning a bit. Finn was simply shrugging when Gus returned with two glasses of punch.

"Hello!" He exclaimed gladly. "Rachel, you look… _très belle_!"

"Belle in deed." Finn smiled at his own play on words, regarding his girlfriend.

"Thanks Gus, you and Quinn look so cute together. Like something from a classy old movie." Rachel stated.

"That is all because of Quinn," Gus said, placing a hand on his date's thigh. "A man and his tuxedo is just the frame – the beautiful woman and her dress is the painting."

Quinn blushed heavily and bit down on her lip when the French boy gave her a big grin, still patting her thigh.

"This is so much better than prom," Finn said, nodding his head.

Both Rachel and Quinn looked up at the same time, cringing with widened eyes, remembering what had been going on between the three of them just six months ago.

Feeling the tension at the table, Gus decided to try and save the situation by referring to one of the many things Quinn had told him about the last prom of McKinley High

"Come on dude, nothing beat a cat fight!" He exclaimed with his best American accent.

Quinn, Finn and Rachel were very quiet for a couple of seconds, before all bursting into laughter and eventually Gus joined in, relieved that that awkward conversation had been more or less avoided.

"Cheers," Rachel bellowed, raising her glass of punch. "For putting the past behind us and enjoying our senior year together."

"Together," Finn agreed.

"Together," Quinn said softly.

Gus smiled and raised his glass as well, and the four students then clanged their drinks together, making the slightly sticky liquid run down the sides of their glasses.

Meanwhile on the dance floor, Sam was doing the cabbage patch around his girlfriend when the band started to play a slow song. He then put his arms around her waist, and she put her hands on his bag.

"You look so awesome tonight, 'Cedes," Sam said. "I think you're the coolest girl I know."

"Thanks, but you're the one who's brave enough to show up looking like a cream puff." Mercedes answered.

"A cream puff? Gee, thanks, I feel so much better now."

"Well you should. You're the best looking cream puff I've ever seen," Mercedes said, as she pressed her lips onto Sam's. "You don't taste like one though."

"What do I taste like?" Sam asked tentatively but with a definite smile upon his lips.

"Pineapple, orange and…" Mercedes licked her lips quizzingly. "… mango, I think."

They looked at each other for a moment, before both stating simultaneously "The punch." Then they both chuckled and kissed each other again.

"Speaking of punch," Sam began, as he pulled away.

"Yeah?"

"You know, I was kinda nervous before you girls arrived."

"Nervous?"

"Well, I was excited to see what you would look like tonight," _but I ended up focusing on Quinn. Stupid, Sam. _"And I felt a little off in this suit, so I think I swallowed like five or six glasses of punch."

"Geez, Sam, no wonder you taste so fruity!"

"Anyways, I sort of need to pay a visit to the men's room after drinking all that…"

"Sure, I'll be out here," Mercedes giggled.

Sam gave her a big smile and went away.

On his way to the bathroom, he saw Finn, Rachel, Quinn and Gus sitting at a table away from the dance floor.

_I don't get it. She's Finn's ex-girlfriend as well. How the hell can he be so casual around her? And with all the drama that went on between the two of them and Rachel – now they're friends?_

Sam snapped out of his thoughts, as he realized he'd been staring at them. _Let it go. I need to be happy that there's no more drama in the glee club. And I have Mercedes. I shouldn't even be looking in the others' direction when a girl like her is waiting for me on the dance floor. _

He approached the door do the bathroom, but couldn't help but look at his ex-girlfriend's direction one last time. _But Quinn does look amazing tonight._

When he returned to the dance floor around a quarter of an hour later (the line to the toilet had been awfully long with all the nervous punch-filled teenage boys), the band was playing a more upbeat song, and he quickly spotted Mercedes dancing wildly with Tina. _Guess I'm not needed there, _he thought amusedly and went over to the punch bowl.

_I shouldn't be too concerned with this suit,_ he mused as he grabbed the ladle of the punch bowl. _It could just be a superhero costume. That's not impossible. I'll be an awesome all white superhero. _He scooped up some punch and lifted the ladle from the bowl. _There must be at least one superhero dressed in all white. Someone cool. _He lifted his glass to translocate the liquid from the ladle to his glass. _Wait, I can only think of one and that's Storm. And she's not a superhero, she's a super heroine. That's why I feel so off tonight, I'm dressed like a freaking heroine. _

Then Sam felt something cool hit his thigh. He looked down and realized that he'd been so caught up in his thoughts, that he had spilled the punch onto his otherwise squeaky clean suit. There now was a large pink spot on his right upper leg.

Embarrassedly, he looked up to see if anyone had noticed. He immediately saw a pair of hazel orbs eyeing him from a few yards away. He then noticed the smile that was forming on her pink lips, though she quickly turned her head to look at Finn, pretending she had been smiling at something the brunette boy had said.

_She's laughing at me now? She has completely ignored me for weeks and now she's laughing at me? _Sam mused incredulously, not noticing the smile escaping his own lips. _I'm standing here alone with this pink shit on my shitty white suit and she's laughing at me?_

"That's not cool." Sam heard a hoarse voice behind him. He turned around to face Mike Chang.

"What?"

"That's not cool. You've got to stop staring at her like that. It's not cool staring at another girl like that when you're with Mercedes." The Asian boy's eyes travelled downward. "What the hell happened on your leg?"

"M-my leg?" Sam asked a bit confused. He'd been caught off guards, not knowing another person had noticed he'd been looking at Quinn. "Oh, that… um, punch."

"Man that sucks," Mike exhaled. "It looks like a virgin version of "Superbad"."

Sam chuckled at the reference, yet Mike stayed serious.

"Seriously dude. You've got to stop looking at her," he said.

Sam just stared at the floor feeling embarrassed.

"You should just leave her alone. Tina said something about Quinn being pissed at you anyways. What was that all about?"

"I-it was nothing," Sam quickly said, thinking about her giving him the silent treatment since that night in front of his house. "I just told her what I thought about her and that Gus-guy being all over each other all the time."

"All over each other? What are you talking about. I don't even think they're dating."

"Oh come on, you know Quinn. You really think she'd let a boy touch her like that if they weren't dating?"

Sam tilted his head in the direction, where Gus was currently sitting with an arm draped around Quinn's waist, rubbing her rib cage _and probably even getting a little side boob as well,_ he thought. Mike followed his eyes and then he sighed heavily.

"Sam," he said, grabbing the blonde boy's neck. "I'll tell you this for the last time." He then twisted his fingers and thus turning Sam's head towards the dance floor. "This is what you need to be looking at. Not some skinny blonde getting cozy with a European, but this." He pointed to where Mercedes was grinningly dancing around with Tina. "You need to look at your lovely lady right there. Look at her. Look at her having fun, look at her dancing. And best of all? She's all yours. She'd never cheat on you, she'd never lie to you; she's just there, waiting for you."

Sam nodded in agreement.

A slow song started and Mike tugged at Sam's sleeve.

"Come on," he said. Let's show our lovely ladies how much we appreciate them. They went onto the dance floor and grabbed their respective girlfriends.

Mercedes gave Sam a big smile when he approached her, and he liked the feeling of having her resting in his arms. Yet as they swayed around, he still felt the urge to look at his ex-girlfriend; see what she was doing. He spotted Quinn only a few feet away. She was resting in Gus' arms the same way Mercedes was resting in his.

_I know Mike is right, _Sam wondered. _Quinn cheated on me and she lied to me, and Mercedes would never do that… _He noticed how Quinn had closed her eyes, a comfortable smile playing on her lips, as she snuggled a bit into the French boy's arms. _But then why do I still feel so drawn to her?_

_..._

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>If the sweet fuzzywuzzy123 is still reading this fic: this is why Quinn was looking at a necklace in Chapter 15. The necklace will also play a part in the next chapter.<br>I'm afraid this was all I had time to write today in my lunch break. I was typing very fast and very hard I think, since my colleagues all looked at me like I was crazy. Now it's late in my country and I need my sleep. I promise that I'll write the second part in my lunch break tomorrow!


	22. Winter Dance part II

**Chapter 22: Winter dance part II  
>Chapter song: "It Might As Well Be Spring" – Dick Haymes<br>Time: November**

* * *

><p>"All right everybody," coach Beiste said into the microphone. "Let's give a big hand to the band."<p>

The students clapped as the slightly older musicians curtsied and stepped away from the stage.

"The DJ will take it from here. It's 10 o'clock and there are two hours left of the McKinley High winter dance of 2011. Enjoy everyone!"

A shaggy looking guy stepped up to the desk and began playing some techno music.

"_Sacre bleu_," Gus exclaimed gladly. "_C'est Stromae!_"

Quinn was confused for a moment, until she recognized the song being played as "Alors on danse".

Along with the rest of the students, Gus began jumping up and down, moving to the beat.

"I'm going to go sit down," Quinn yelled to drown out the loud music.

Gus just nodded, quickly assimilating into the crowd of sweating teenagers.

Quinn squeezed through the pupils and exited the dance floor. She then poured herself a glass of punch and sat down at a nearby table.

She'd never enjoyed techno music; it was difficult to dance to, at least the way she liked to dance, it was always played too loud and the tunes were never really catchy.

She looked down to the bottom of her glass through the pinkish punch. _Since when did I become the lame grandmother sitting alone at a dance, bitching about modern music? _She took a long sip. _Probably at the same moment I freaked out about not wearing any pearls, _she snickered to herself.

"What's so funny, Fabray?" Santana asked, sitting down at Quinn's table.

"I feel old."

"You ARE old."

"I'm 18," Quinn stated, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, your body is, but mentally you're like a 60-year-old. Why do you think we call you 'Quinn-appropriate'?"

"Oh, thanks San," the blonde girl answered sarcastically. "And why is it again that you're spoiling me with your enchanting company instead of being on the dance floor?"

"'Cause your boyfriend stole my girl," she answered simply, tilting her head towards the before mentioned dance floor where Gus and Brittany were currently grinding against each other.

Santana scoffed. "You know, she still thinks he's the king of Europe."

"Honestly, I'm not sure he'd tell her otherwise if she asked him," Quinn giggled, looking at her two friends having fun. _I didn't know Gus could be such a dirty dancer, _she mused and once again she wondered whether she knew him as well as she thought she did.

"So, you're sure about not coming to the after party?" Santana asked.

"Definitely. This old lady needs her beauty sleep."

"Suit yourself grandma, but I think your boyfriend has changed his mind."

"For the last time, he's not my-…" Quinn decided to let it go. "Gus can do what he wants, he's a big boy."

"You'd know, wouldn't you?" the Latina smirked, thrusting her hips forward on the chair.

"You're so gross. Please go away." Quinn snarled, emptying her glass.

"Fine. But you shouldn't drink so much punch," Santana said, standing up. "It's filled with empty calories, and it'll make you fat." She walked away, ignoring Quinn, who was scowling at her.

_She sure knows how to piss me off, _the blonde thought, biting in the styrofoam cup. _And I haven't even had that much punch. _She knew that was lie, as her bladder told her otherwise a few minutes later

On her way back from the powder room, Quinn poured herself another glass of punch, oblivious to the raven haired girl's warning.

_I'm not going to get fat from drinking a non-alcoholic drink at a dance._ Triumphantly, she strode towards her table. _That'll show her. _

When she sat down, she noticed the song had changed to another techno. Looking at the dance floor, she could discern some of her friends amongst the ever moving crowd. She saw Santana and Brittany surrounded by footballers, Puck making out with Maya in the corner, Anna wheeling Artie around like a crazy person, Gus dancing with some girls from the drama club, Finchel giggling on their way towards the powder room (_oh god, I did not need to see that, _Quinn thought) and at last she spotted Tina, Mercedes and Mike trying to do the Macarena to the upbeat song.

Quinn smiled to herself upon seeing all of them enjoying themselves, when a thought suddenly hit her. _Someone's missing. _She didn't have time to look anywhere else in the gym, because suddenly a voice behind her said:

"I know I'm usually the perv, but you're sitting all alone, with a drink in your hand, watching sweaty teenagers grope each other. That seems pretty pervy to me."

Quinn turned around to see the blonde boy whom she hadn't been able to spot on the dance floor. "Sure, if I were a middle aged guy with my hand down in my pants, but I'm not; I'm a young girl in an expensive dress. I'm the most innocent a person can ever get."

"No, the most innocent a person can get is being an eight year old little girl named Stacey."

"Probably not, according to Freud."

"What?" The blonde boy asked confusedly.

"Never mind, the movie about him will come out soon, you'll get it then." She turned back around to her drink.

"Oh, I know Freud, I was just wondering which phase you were referring to," Sam said, taking a seat next to her.

This time, Quinn didn't play along. She just glanced at him before taking a sip of punch.

Sam sighed heavily. "I'm sorry Quinn… 'bout the other night. Wasn't my place to, you know- I was just a little surprised to see you there in the middle of the night and-"

"It was 11 o'clock, Sam."

"-and I was tired, so I overreacted and said some things I probably shouldn't have said."

She looked at him, her features softened a bit.

"Scratch that, I definitely shouldn't have said those things. I'm really sorry; I was totally out of line."

A small smile formed on Quinn's lips, much to Sam's happiness. "It's okay."

"Really?" He asked, surprised at how easily she'd accepted the apology he'd been too afraid to give her for weeks.

"Yes. I get it: you're the stereotypical protective big brother-kind of guy." _Did I just say that out loud?_

"I'm the what?" He asked blinkingly.

"Oh uh, never mind."

"You talked to Rachel?"

Quinn furrowed her brows nervously. "How did you know?"

"'Cause Finn told me to stop being the stereotypical protective whatever. When I asked him if he'd made that up himself, he told me that Rachel had delivered him that expression."

"Oh," Quinn murmured, looking at her drink. "Sorry."

"Nah, it's no big deal. I guess he's right, I was freaking out a bit, seeing you out on the street with Gus," Sam smiled and Quinn returned the gesture. "Speaking of Gus, where is your dance partner?"

Quinn pointed towards the spot on the dance floor, where the French boy was rubbing up against three girls at one time (all from the drama club, of course), while a few other girls were trying to get to dance with him as well. She sighed loudly and shook her head lightly, looking a little disappointed.

"Sorry," Sam said. Quinn turned her head to look at him. "Sorry you have to see him with all those girls," he continued upon noticing her confused look.

"That's okay, I ha-"

"Hate techno, yes, I know," Sam grinned, but quickly turned a bit more serious. "But he should still be sitting down here with you when you're his date."

Quinn regarded her ex. _Always the gentleman, _she thought. "It's all right. It's his first American dance, he's allowed to act like an American boy."

"Not all American boys would leave their beautiful date at a table all alone in a gym filled with other horny teenagers," he stated teasingly.

"They wouldn't?"

"I wouldn't." Sam looked at her intensely.

"I know." Quinn said while looking him straight in the eyes. After a brief moment, she turned her head towards the dance floor, unsure why he'd say that to her.

"You sure you're all right?" Sam asked, breaking the silence between them.

"Yes, of course," Quinn said rapidly. "It's just that he's my ride home, but I have a feeling I'm not going anywhere anytime soon."

"You wanna go home already?"

Quinn considered telling him about her mother's lacking trust, but decided against, since she discovered her mother had nothing to do with her wanting to leave at that moment. "Yes, I'd like to go home."

"I can drive you home," Sam suddenly offered.

"What?" Quinn asked in disbelief. "N-no, what about the after party?"

"Don't care about that,"

"Since when?"

"Since you won't be there."

Quinn's eyes widened.

_Shit, _he mused. He wasn't planning on saying that, it just sort of fell out of his mouth.

"No, I won't be there," Quinn said slowly. "But Mercedes will, Sam."

He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, unsure how to save this. "Y-yeah, I know," he stuttered. "I was just planning on driving you home and then come back here and pick up Mercedes, and then we'd go to the party." _Even Chewbacca would think that was a stupid plan, _Sam thought and judging from the look on Quinn's face, she was thinking the exact same thing.

"It'll be a total waste of your time._ I'll_ be a waste of your time," she said, shaking her head.

"You're never a waste of my time," he said, sounding more comfortable. "Come on, Quinn" he pleaded, putting his hand on top of hers. "I know the street where you live." He gave a big toothy grin when he saw her face light up.

Quinn immediately recognized the words. _'The street where you live', he knows, he knows my favourite song! _"How did you find out?" she asked happily.

"Um, find out what? Quinn, I've been at your house like a thousand times," Sam chuckled, tilting his head.

"Oh, right," Quinn said quietly, casting her gaze downwards. _Nice one, Quinn. He says a completely regular sentence, and I immediately think he's done a crime scene investigation to figure out which "My Fair Lady"-song I prefer. He didn't even say the exact title. _Quinn exhaled. _It must be the punch getting to my head. _She lifted her glass and emptied it. _Right, the non-alcoholic fruit punch. I must be wasted._

Sam looked at his former girlfriend, unable to understand what was going through her mind. At least she wasn't angry with him anymore. "Let me take you home, Quinn," he said, standing up and offering a hand. "Please?"

_How am I supposed to say no to that? _Quinn mused. "Sure. I'll just leave a note for Gus."

Sam groaned inwardly. _If he's not her boyfriend, then why is she so considerate of him?_

Quinn pulled out an eyeliner from her purse and grabbed a napkin from the table, where she was still seated.

'Gus, I've gone home.' she wrote, but then paused, unsure what to wright next.

_I can't tell him who's driving me, _she thought. _There's nothing going on between Gus and I, I think, but no matter what, I cannot choose Sam over Gus so obviously. And what if Mercedes finds this? I feel pretty certain that Sam hasn't exactly told her that he's taking me home. Oh dear, what are we doing?_

She clutched her eyeliner a bit, feeling Sam staring down at her. She then wrote: 'I was tired and you looked like you were having fun. Bonne nuit, bisous 3'

Once again Sam groaned, but out loud this time. It just about killed him seeing her draw that heart. He would have felt even worse, if he'd had known the meaning of the word she wrote before the heart.

"'Kay, I'm ready," Quinn mumbled, grabbing her purse, taking Sam's hand and getting up.

As she stood up, he let go of her hand and put his on the smaller part of her back. He then felt her tense up and immediately he let his hand drop again. He knew it was a little too intimate for her, but it really was just a habit for him.

Their eyes met briefly, but they quickly looked away, both affected by the obvious awkwardness. They began walking towards the exit, both of them hurrying a bit, as they both felt guilty.

_This is completely allright, _Sam thought as he opened his car door for Quinn. _She's a friend and I'm taking her home. Nothing wrong with that. _

When she got in the car, her dress slid up a bit, exposing some thigh. Sam gulped and blinked a few times. _Okay, this is definitely not all right. _He inhaled deeply and got in the car himself, gripping the steering wheel tightly and starting the car.

Quinn watched as his knuckles turned white. "Sam?"

"Uh huh," he said, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Please relax," she said softly.

Sam sighed heavily and loosened his grip a bit. "Sorry. This is kind of awful, right? The tension between us."

"Yeah," Quinn agreed. "I don't think it has to be like this. We should be able to be friends – like we were before the summer break."

"That's easier said than done," he scoffed.

"Come on, we just have to do what friends do."

"And what would that be?" He asked tentatively.

"I-I don't know," she murmured. "Eating ice cream together, I guess."

Sam turned his face to look at her. "Really? It's in the middle of the night in November and you want to go for ice cream?"

"Are you really that surprised?" Quinn giggled.

"No, miss Fabray, I am not," Sam laughed, turning to the right. "But I'm afraid the mall is closed and there aren't that many ice cream shops open at this time of year. Would a slushie from 7-11 be all right?"

"It'll do just fine," she answered, giving him a big smile.

Fifteen minutes later, they were sitting in the parking lot in front of the drugstore, on the roof of Sam's car, each with a cold cup in their hands.

"I love winter time," Quinn said with the straw in her mouth. "It's a great opportunity to wear pretty coats and nice boots. But I hate that all the outdoor ice cream parlors close and I have to go so many months with Dairy Queen and 7-11."

"You sound like an addict," Sam laughed.

"Maybe it's not so much the ice cream itself, but it's more the feeling you get when you buy an ice cream. That's why I'm always looking forward to March 1st; it's the first day of spring, there are only a couple of months 'till my birthday and, best of all, the ice cream stall in the park opens."

Sam looked at her, noticing the distant dreamy look in her eyes.

"Every year I look so much forward to that particular day, where I can go down in the park, buy an ice cream cone and sit down on the swings, knowing it's spring time."

"But it's still pretty cold March 1st," Sam noted. "You can rarely feel it's spring time at all, especially not here in Ohio."

"That doesn't bother me. Sitting on the swings with an ice cream in my hand, I'll know it's spring, no matter how the weather is."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, looking up at the stars. It was a clear night and the moon was right above their heads.

"… so beautiful," Sam murmured, his head tilted back.

_Did he just call me beautiful? _"What?" Quinn asked, looking over at him.

"The stars. They're so beautiful."

"Oh… yeah, they are." She couldn't figure out whether she was relieved or disappointed.

"I love astronomy. The way th-"

"Are you really going to give me that talk… again?" Quinn interrupted, quirking an eyebrow.

"I guess not," Sam smirked, looking at her. "Do you remember the first time we met?"

"I do," Quinn replied. "The first time we saw each other. You made a complete fool of yourself in front of everyone in glee club."

"I didn't mean the first time we saw each other. And actually that wasn't in glee club; that was when you performed that New York-song in the school yard."

"You noticed me there?"

"I did, but I'm not talking about that either. I meant the first time we actually met, you know, talked together."

"After you got slushie'd," she said slowly, reminiscing.

"Yeah, and you helped me afterwards. You were so friendly to me, and I didn't get it, 'cause I'd heard some of the jocks refer to you as the head bitch of whatever. But there you were, washing me with your soft hands, looking at me with your pretty eyes, being a total saint…"

_Thank god he can't see my blush in this light, _Quinn mused, though she was wrong.

Sam grinned at her reaction and finished his sentence: "… and you shared some really personal information."

"I did?" She asked.

"You don't remember?"

"I remember you hitting on me with your dorky manners," she teased.

"Speaking na'vi is not dorky. And as far as I remember, you were the one who brought up "Avatar"," he said poking her in the ribs.

"What are you tal-…" Then she recalled exactly what she'd said that day in the girls' powder room. "Oh god, I can't believe I actually said that," she whispered with a smile.

"I thought you were cute as hell," Sam assured her, gently bumping her shoulder with his own.

Quinn smiled but kept her eyes on her half-filled slush-ice.

"And look what you're drinking now," Sam said playfully. "I believe that is one blueberry flavored slushie."

Quinn let her mouth drop open, gasping loudly, as Sam put one arm around her to keep her arms still, while he with his other hand grabbed her slush-ice.

"You know, I always wondered what you'd look like as an Avatar," he laughed as he tipped the slushie over, the blue liquid getting dangerously close to the edge of the cup.

Quinn screeched. "No, Sam, NO DON'T!"

"Don't worry Quinnie, you're not even wearing pants!" Sam said in a teasing tone, wiggling the slush-ice right above her stomach while tickling her side with his other hand.

Quinn laughed, squealed and squirmed in his embrace. "No no no, Sam… please… no, please don't… not my dress!" She yelled in between her panting.

"You're right," Sam stated calmly, finally letting go of her. "It would be too bad to ruin that beautiful dress of yours." He put her slushie down between them.

"You can't do a thing like that to a lady," Quinn spat, trying to cover up her huge grin.

"Well, excuse me, madam," he answered in a mocking tone. "Can I at least get the pleasure of escorting milady home?"

"Why, I thought you'd never ask," Quinn said, letting him help her get down from the car roof.

"You know, I wasn't kidding before," Sam murmured gingerly as they drove the way towards Quinn's house. "You do look beautiful in that dress."

"Thanks." Quinn glanced over at him. "I wish I could say the same to you."

"Please Q, I've already been insulted numerous times tonight. Cream puff, bee gee… I don't need anymore."

"Sorry," Quinn chuckled. "You don't look that bad, though. I mean, not compared to…"

"Puck?" Sam finished.

"Yeah. Did he seriously come to the winter dance as a dog?"

"He did. He's so whipped."

"I think it's kind of cute that he'd do that for Maya. I never thought he was that kind of guy."

Sam looked over at her, knowing they were moving in on a sensitive topic for her.

"I mean, I know he can be sweet and caring," she continued. "But I've never seen him cave in like that for a girl. Not for Lauren Zizes, not for Santana, not for Mercedes, not for Rachel… not for me."

"Do you miss him?"

"No, I don't think so," Quinn said quietly. "Maybe I miss what we had, what we shared. But I don't miss him… at least not like I miss y-" Quinn swallowed the rest of the word, when she realized what she was about to say.

Their eyes met briefly, before he continued watching the road, as she looked down at her lap. They fell into an awkward silence, neither of them knowing how to carry on with the conversation.

It wasn't until they pulled up in front of Quinn's house that the silence was broken.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Sam exclaimed, giving Quinn a slight shock. "Open the glove department."

Still not comfortable facing him after her revelation, she slowly pushed it open, revealing a long blue box.

"Take it out," Sam said.

When Quinn just sat with the box in her hands, not knowing what to do, he laughed.

"Open it!" He said, sounding very excited.

Quinn bit her bottom lip and slowly pushed the lid of. She gasped when she realized what it was. Inside of the blue box was an elegant pearl necklace consisting of cream coloured freshwater pearls held together by a golden lock at one end.

"Oh my gosh," Quinn whispered.

"I-I don't know if that was the one you wanted," Sam said quickly. "That day, at the mall, you just left the Dairy Queen so quickly, I figured you forgot to buy that. So I went back to the jewelry department after you'd left and bought that. I know it's not like big or flashy or anything but I thought it looked like something you'd wear. A-and Stacy said it was the prettiest one in the store, so…"

Quinn just kept on staring at the necklace.

"So…" Sam said tentatively. "Is it okay?"

"Sam, I…" Quinn began, finally looking at him. "It's so beautiful."

"Well, sometimes a girl just needs her pearls, right?" Sam smiled, referring to the conversation between Quinn and Gus he'd overheard earlier on that evening.

She just kept on looking at him.

"Here, let me put it on you."

Quinn turned slightly in her seat and lifted up her hair (_god, just the sight of her neck, _Sam mused), and he closed the string of pearls around her neck. She then turned back around and he took her in, as she sat there, in the moonlight shining through the windshield, wearing the pearls that he had given her.  
><em>She looks so beautiful. God, I miss her. <em>"I miss you," Sam admitted quietly.

Quinn parted her lips slightly, but didn't know what to answer. She nibbled at her lower lip and that did it for Sam. He was suddenly captured by her appearance; her hazel eyes shining as brightly as the stars; her rosy cheeks looking oh so soft; her blonde hair cascading down her shoulders; and most importantly, her raspberry pink lips. The looked so inviting and Sam couldn't resist anymore.

He slowly leaned into her, as he gently put his hand on her dress clad thigh. He could feel her cringe a bit, yet she didn't pull away. He closed his eyes and just as their lips were about to touch, he inhaled the sweet scent of her perfume, enjoying how close they were. He could feel her warm breath on his lips and he wanted nothing more than to close the gap between them and finally uniting them after all these months.

But then his nose picked up another smell coming from her mouth; a sweet fruity scent, which he immediately recognized as the punch they had been serving at the school. _Pineappl_e,_ orange and… mango_, Sam thought, remembering the conversation he had had with Mercedes only a few hours earlier. And then he saw Mercedes' face in front of him, and he realized what he was doing.

"I can't," he said firmly, pulling away and taking his hand off of her thigh.

Quinn inhaled sharply and let her eyes flutter open. Sam then saw the hurt look on her face and felt like throwing up for doing that to her. "I-I'm so sorry Quinn, but I can't do that to Mercedes. S-she's my girlfriend and I can't cheat on her."

Quinn's breath hitched as she took in the situation. She felt the tears starting to gather in her eyes.

"Quinn, I'm-"

"No, you're right," Quinn said quietly. "I can't do this to Mercedes either. She's my best friend. I'm sorry too." She smoothened the fabric of her dress, where his hand had just rested a few seconds earlier. Then she reached up behind her neck and opened the pearl necklace.

"No, Quinn, you don't have to…" Sam tried, but it was too late.

Quinn grabbed her purse and got out of the car, leaving the gift on the seat.

"Please, Quinn." Sam said in a low voice.

"No, Sam. This isn't right." She closed the car door behind her and walked up to her house. As she put the key in the door lock, she was just about to turn around, but decided against it when she felt the tears sliding down her cheeks. Had she turned around, she would have seen her ex-boyfriend being just as miserable as herself.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>So, finally some Fabrevans interaction. Judging from previous reviews, I feel rather certain that a bunch of you will literally hate me now for not letting them be together. I'm sorry! However, I love Mercedes as a character and I actually enjoy Samcedes as a friendship - so I want to end their romance properly. Fabrevans is endgame for this fic, but there will be more back and forth before they get each other as well as the reactions of their fellow glee club members.<br>If I'm stalling too much for some of your likings, then I apologize. But I like writing about the chase, the insecurities and the battles, and as long as just a few of you don't mind the wait, then I'm not planning on speeding up the process - of course this story is latching towards its end, but the the two young lovers won't get each other just yet.


	23. Telltale

**Chapter 23: Tell-tale  
>Chapter song: "You'll Never Walk Alone" – Gerry &amp; The Pacemakers<br>Time: December**

* * *

><p>Quinn was working on their monthly assignment when a tiny folded piece of paper was dropped on her notebook. She glanced up to see Finn stretching awkwardly.<p>

"What?" She whispered a little annoyed.

When Finn and Rachel had entered the English literature class that morning, they had completely ignored Quinn, despite her greeting them. That is, Rachel had been ignoring her completely, sticking her nose in the air at Quinn's 'hello'. Finn had waved slightly, but not nearly enough to make Quinn forgive his girlfriend.

'Read it,' Finn mouthed dramatically, eyeing the note he had just passed her.

Sighing heavily, Quinn unfolded the paper and read it:  
><em>Need to talk with you but Rach cant know. Stay after class and wait for me ok?<em>

A year ago, Quinn would have been convinced that Finn was trying to cheat with her, and maybe she'd even have gone for it, due to her dislike of Rachel. However, this was senior year and Quinn wasn't the only one who had grown; she had witnessed herself how Finn and Rachel had matured greatly, so she felt pretty secure that Finn wasn't interested in hooking up when he dropped the note on her table.

Therefore, she stayed in her seat when the bell rang. Rachel glared at her, wondering why the former cheerleader wasn't moving, but apparently she was still too upset to ask Quinn what was the matter, so she coldly exited the class room with Finn in her heels.

It only took a matter of minutes before the latter returned, sneaking in through the door.

"Are we alone?" He asked, suspiciously looking around.

"Yes," Quinn answered obviously annoyed. "Finn, what's going on?"

"First, Rachel's pissed at you, so you can't tell her about us meeting now," the tall boy said quietly, as he sat down next to Quinn.

"She won't even talk to me, so you really don't have to worry about that," the blonde stated. "Wait, why is she pissed at me?"

"Because of the way you acted at the winter dance."

"Why? What did I do?"

Finn sighed. "Come on, Quinn, don't play stupid. We all saw you leave with Sam. Everybody noticed."

"Yeah and so? What's wrong with that?"

"You mean except he's your best friend's boyfriend? I thought you were done with all the cheating and lying."

"What?" Quinn raised her eyebrows, shocked at the tremendous accusation. "Sam didn't cheat on Mercedes. Not with me, not with anybody. I was tired and he drove me home, that's it."

"It took him two hours! He barely made it back before Mercedes drove off with Mike and Tina for the after party. I don't wanna know what you were doing, but I can't help but think it was something you weren't supposed to do."

Quinn remained silent, knowing Finn wouldn't believe her, if she told him that they'd simply gone for slush ice.

"Look, I know you miss him, I understand that. I just can't believe you'd actually do that to Mercedes… and Gus as well, how do you think it made him feel, discovering you'd already gone home and didn't even say good bye?"

"I did, l-"

"You left him a napkin, Quinn. He was your date and you left him a freaking napkin!"

Quinn felt her cheeks flush as she embarrassedly casted her eyes downward.

"Sorry," Finn murmured upon yelling at her. "I'm your friend and I'm not here to judge you. I'm just trying to show you what this looks like – even if you and Sam didn't actually do anything."

"I get it," Quinn mumbled. "But I want you to know that I didn't do anything with Sam. I couldn't do that to Mercedes, I swear." She tried to sound sincere, but she knew she was lying. It had been Sam who pulled back that night, not her.

"Okay. I trust you," Finn said, gently padding her hand.

"Are they all as mad at me as Rachel is?" Quinn asked with a small voice.

"No, I lied earlier," Finn admitted. "It was only Rachel and I who saw you leave, 'cause we were coming back from the, uh, the ladies room…"

Quinn snickered a bit at the sight of his ears turning bright red.

"… we didn't tell anyone else, and Sam said he'd just been out to get some air when he returned.

Mercedes was a little pissed, but I don't think she suspects anything."

"That is until Rachel tells her," Quinn scoffed.

"Don't talk about her like that."

"Come on Finn, I know she's changed over the past year, but you can't deny she has a record of not being able to keep secrets. If she's going to judge me based on my past actions, I might as well do the same with her."

Finn couldn't help but feel disappointed at Quinn's unfriendly words. "I thought the two of you had actually become closer. I thought you'd become friends"

"We have," Quinn agreed. "But a real friend wouldn't have ignored me like she did today. A real friend would have listened to my explanation instead of just choosing Mercedes' sides immediately. Had Rachel been interested in my part of the history, she would have discovered that there were no need to choose sides."

"And you think I just discovered that?"

"I hope so."

Finn squeezed her hand. "I did. There's no need to choose sides. You can count on me."

She gave him a small but genuine smile. They exited the class room together.

…

The entire glee club was sitting at a table in the school cafeteria. Rachel was still ignoring Quinn, but knowing that Finn wasn't mad at her, Quinn didn't feel quite as bad. She was sitting across from Sam and Mercedes, but tried to keep her eyes on her plate. Every time she met Sam's gaze, she'd go over their encounter in his car in her head, and every time she'd feel sick to her stomach seeing him with Mercedes.

Gus was sitting next to her, but she hadn't had the chance to talk to him about last Friday night. He'd been a bit more quiet than usual at lunch, but he didn't seem angry, which Quinn was pleased about. Yet she couldn't help but notice how he didn't really want to look her in the eyes.

A girl from the drama club approached their table and tapped Gus on the shoulder.

"Hi, um, I was just, um, you know, wondering if you, like, had any, um, plans today," the girl mumbled. When Gus didn't answer immediately, she quickly continued: "It's just that me and Ashley and Sophie are meeting up after school at my house and we're gonna read Molière's "l'Amour Médecin" and we were just sort of wondering if you'd know, like to go," she shrugged trying to act nonchalant, but failed miserably.

Gus shot Quinn a brief glance, before answering the girl: "No, I am sorry, Carla. Today I have a tutor lesson with Quinn."

_Wow, he never said it like that before, _Quinn thought upon hearing the hurt in his voice. _I'm his friend; he shouldn't feel obligated to come to my house._

As soon as the drama girl had gone away, Quinn leaned into Gus. "Can we talk?" He looked a little hesitant, so she continued: "Privately. Please?"

Gus thought for a moment, but then he got up and offered her a hand. "Yes, I would like that."

Quinn knew the other glee club member were staring at them and probably whispering when they left the cafeteria, but she didn't really care. Making things right with Gus was more important.

They went into the choir room, where they sat down facing each other.

"Gus, I'm… I'm sorry."

The French boy just looked down.

"Please say something," she pleaded.

"I just don't understand why you left me," he answered, pouting a bit.

"I know, I'm sorry. It was just that I was feeling tired and I saw you at the dance floor, you were having so much fun. I wanted to go home, but I didn't want to ruin your party."

"You could have say good bye."

"And I probably should have, but honestly, would you have let me go if I'd told you I was going home alone?"

"You go home alone?"

Quinn sighed upon realizing she still hadn't told him who took her home. "N-no, I didn't go home alone. Sam drove me."

The French boy squinted a bit. "Why?"

"I don't know, he was just there. And I really didn't feel like staying two additional hours till the end of the dance, just sitting alone at a table. And I saw you dance with those girls from the drama club and I know we're not dating or anything, but I guess I just felt a little jealous since you were my date. And then Sam was just there being all sweet and nice, joking and apologizing and he made me feel comfortable…"

Sensing how his friend's tone of voice had changed from frustrated to sad, Gus moved closer to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "What happen?"

"Nothing happened. He's was just being sweet and he took me for slush ice and we sat on the car roof…" Tears began rolling down her cheeks as she continued: "And he was just being really nice and it was like we were friends again, and you know how I've missed him. And he drove me home, and there was that necklace and I tried to kiss him, but then… and he… because… with Mercedes…" Quinn was now sobbing loudly, so Gus held her tight, kissing her forehead.

"Oh Quinn, you should not have go with him. If you say to me you want to go home, I will drive you." He patted her back lovingly before he continued: " You are my best friend here."

Quinn sniffed loudly, trying to control her tears. "But I'm not your girlfriend or your little sister," she said firmly, pulling away from him and wiping her cheeks. "You shouldn't plan everything according to me."

"I don't understand," Gus said, pinching his earlobe.

"Listen Gus, as much as I love you being there for me, I don't want to pull you down or force you to take care of me."

He kept on tugging at his ear, so Quinn kept on speaking: "I left the winter dance because I knew you were having fun. And knowing I had to break in to get you to take me home, I was going to ruin that fun. No, please don't interrupt me. You know I love being with you, but I also love seeing you happy. If being with those girls from the drama club makes you happy, then please, go be with them. Don't say no to their invitation because you're afraid of hurting me."

He let his hands drop to his lap, seemingly understanding, though still not nodding.

"Let's skip our tutoring session today, Gus."

"No! Qu-"

"Your English is great and we'll have plenty of other afternoons to talk and listen to old music. Just this one time Gus, do what you'd rather like to do, not what you feel obliged to do."

"I will rather be with you." He pouted a little.

"A little break from me will do you good. We can't have you getting sick of me, can we now?" She asked smilingly, though her smile didn't reach her eyes.

"You are sure it is okay?"

"Perfectly sure. Go spend your day with those girls and come and bitch about them to me afterwards."

"And you will be okay?"

"You know, I had a life before you, Gus," she chuckled. "I think I can manage spending a day alone."

"You know that is not what I mean," he said seriously.

And she knew. She casted her eyes downwards, but he quickly cupped her chin with his hand, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "I hate to see you be alone."

"There's not much to do about it," Quinn said quietly, feeling the hot stinging of tears in her eyes. "He genuinely loves her and he has for months now."

"Maybe. But if he is _si ignorant _that he choose another girl instead of you, he does not deserve you."

Quinn let her tears fell as her friend pulled her in for another hug. _Sam doesn't deserve me? If only Gus knew how I acted last year. _She frowned a bit, but the French boy couldn't see it, as her head was buried in his neck. _But he does know; I've told him about everything – and in details! So why does he still treat me like a saint? _Despite Gus' comforting embrace, Quinn still felt a little guilty, so she shyly pulled away.

"Let me take you home," he whispered, caressing her cheek.

"No, you shouldn't. I actually wouldn't mind being alone this afternoon; I need to do some thinking."

"You are sure?"

"For the last time: Yes, Gus, I'm sure," she smiled. "Now go and tell those annoying drama club girls that you'd like to be their personal piece of meat for the day."

Gus got up and began walking towards the door. "You are not coming?"

"I'll be out in a minute," she assured him.

As soon as he'd left the door, Quinn exhaled deeply. She wasn't really use to people being so selfless and caring so much for her, (_Sam was like that when we dated, wasn't he?_) she wasn't always sure what was the right thing to do around Gus (_yes, he was that selfless and caring, but that's what a boyfriend, who's not Finn or Puck, is supposed to be like. Gus is just that way naturally, not even getting any of the benefits of being in a relationship. He's just loving and caring as it is_), trying to find a balance between not abusing his giving nature and not being plain down repellent and rejecting.

Slowly she got up from her seat, heading towards the door. She knew that she looked terrible from all the crying, and she just wanted to go to the girl's bathroom before running in to everybody, though she knew it was going to be difficult since the lunch break was coming to an end and everybody was heading towards their lockers to find their books.

…

"I'll pick you up at 8," Sam said, pecking his girlfriend on the cheek.

"M'kay, but you better not be late!"

"I won't, I swear." He smiled at her and continued down the hall, stopping in front of his locker.

"It's that stupid Quinn Fabray," a voice said beside him. He looked to his left, where a girl from the drama club was standing in front of her locker, two other girls looking expectantly at her. "He said he had a tutor lesson with her today."

"Of course he chooses her over us. They're probably having sex and stuff like that," one of the other girls said.

Sam immediately felt his stomach drop at those words, but he couldn't keep from paying attention to their conversation.

"Na-ah, don't think so. I think she's holding him on a like really tight leash and shit."

"Man, she's such a bitch, just trying to keep him all to herself." A third girl said

"I bet she doesn't even love him, she just wants some of her popularity back."

"But it's just totally unfair, I mean, we actually want to hear him speak French. She just wants him to, like, learn English."

"I know, it's like 'hello, he's from another country, so let him keep his own language!'"

"She's such a bitch."

"Yeah, totally."

"Totally."

Sam's was now completely facing the three girls. He was insulted on Quinn's behalf, yet very amused at the lack of content and consideration in the drama girls' conversation.

He was still staring at them, when his peripheral view caught the mentioned French boy. _Did he just come out of the choir room? _Sam mused. _What the hell was he doing in there all by himself._

Gus looked a little lost, until he spotted the three girls standing next to Sam. He practically skipped over to them with a large smile on his face. "Carla," he yelled.

"Hi Gus!" All three girls exclaimed simultaneously.

"Sophie, Ashley," he nodded. "I just want to say that I will very much love to read Molière with you today after school."

"Oh my god, like seriously?"

"Yes. Seriously."

"That's so awesome!"

"Uh, thank you."

"But what about Quinn Fabray?"

Gus looked from one girl to the other. "It is fine," he smiled, walking past the girls and Sam.

_Why was he smirking li-_Sam's thoughts were interrupted when once again he saw the choir room door open. This time another familiar face appeared, though somewhat tear stained.

Upon seeing his ex-girlfriend's rosy cheeks, red nose and sticky eyelashes, Sam felt the rage bubbling inside of him. _So that's why Gus was suddenly free to go on a date with those bimbos. 'It's fine', was that what he said? He calls that fine? He blows off Quinn, making her cry, and then he calls it fine? That stupid, idiotic, moronic, motherfu… _Clenching his jaw and folding his fists, a red-faced Sam began walking after the French boy.

… meanwhile…

Quinn didn't get far down the hall before running into a familiar little brunette. At first, Rachel gave her a death stare, but then she noticed Quinn's wet face.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

Quinn, still feeling a little betrayed, bit her cheek and tried to play cool. "Nothing."

"Why have you been crying then?"

"Rachel, not now. Please just leave me alone."

"N-no, wait. I-I'm sorry for earlier today. Finn just told me that I probably need to hear your side of the story of the dance, so…"

Quinn just exhaled, ready to pass her shorter friend.

"Wait, please," Rachel pleaded.

Quinn was just about to hiss at her when she remembered her own words from earlier that day. _A real friend would have listened to my explanation. _Rachel Berry was actually being a real friend right now, when Quinn needed it the most, and she was pushing her away.

Slowly, Quinn turned around to face her. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "It's just been a really… a really long day."

"I think I understand," Rachel said, patting the blonde's arm soothingly. "Is there anything I can do for you? Get you a tissue? Carry your books?… Beat up a certain Ken?"

Quinn gave a small smile at the last sentence. "No thanks, I think I'm just gon-… Oh, actually, there is one thing you can do for me."

"Shoot!"

"Well, my car is still at the work shop and I really don't feel like walking home today. Do you think you can drop me off at my house on your way home?"

"Sure!" Rachel exclaimed. "No problem at all. What about Gus, is he driving with us as well? I think I heard you two talk about a tutor lesson"

"No, actually Gus and I aren't ha-"

Quinn's voice was cut off when she heard a familiar voice yell her name.

"What's going on?" Rachel murmured, but Quinn had already turned the corner to see why her ex-boyfriend was yelling. The sight that met her made her heart stop as she froze completely.

… a minute earlier …

"Hey," Sam said, trying to contain his voice at an attempt to hide his anger. He tapped Gus on the shoulder, resulting in the latter turning around.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I was just wondering why you were being such a jack-ass."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard. And judging from the time you've spent with Quinn, I'm pretty sure you understand what it means."

"What is this about?"

"It's about you being a total asshole and choosing those stupid drama girls over her."

"Not your business," Gus said casually, turning around to walk away from the angered blonde boy.

"It is my business," Sam yelled "when you're hurting my friend. And guess what? Quinn's my friend, and today you hurt her, you idiot."

"Really? Is Quinn really your friend? Is that how you normal treat your friends?" Gus hissed. He wasn't a very tempered boy, but he had seen Quinn suffer enough because of her ex-boyfriend.

"Shut up," Sam said, pushing the European boy slightly. "You don't know shit about me or Quinn!"

Gus just shook his head and once again tried to walk away.

"So that's how you handle things, huh? You just keep running away. Running away from all the responsibility and all the problems."

"What are you talking about?"

"Like today, you and Quinn had a date and you ditch her because you'd rather be with those girls from the drama club."

"And what is the problem?"

"The problem is, you freaking douchebag, that you left Quinn crying, not caring about her feelings."

"I did not make her cry." _**You**__ did, you ignorant_, Gus mused_._

"Yes you did! I saw her myself, after you had left her, she had been crying – a lot!"

Gus was just about to explain how her tears had actually been Sam's fault, when the blonde boy interrupted him:

"You don't even care about her, you just go and hang out with some other girls. Yeah that's right, just leave Quinn all by herself, all alone. Never mind that you're dating or anything, just leave her by herself," Sam yelled, not noticing the pair of hazel orbs, eyeing him from behind.

"Quinn and I are not dating," Gus scoffed. "She has a lot of boys."

"What did you just say?" Sam asked, not believing what he had just heard, stepping closer to the somewhat taller boy.

"Quinn has a lot of boys. She doesn't need me to be her boyfriend."

Sam slowly began to lose his grip, as a red cloud of anger blurred his vision. How could that idiotic, stupid, thoughtless, son of a bitch asshole stand there with a straight face and call Quinn, Quinn Fabray of all people, a slut? How… how…

Without thinking, Sam clenched his fist and pulled back his hand. _He's not gonna talk about my girl like that. _

Somewhere, Sam heard a familiar voice screech, but he couldn't stop. His fist landed right in the middle of the French boy's face, making an awful cracking sound.

Everything went silent, everything stopped. Sam was breathing heavily and his heartbeat seemed deafening to him as he took in the situation. There in front of him on the floor, lay Gus. Quinn's boyfriend. He lay there with a face contorted in pain, holding a hand in front of his nose, which was bleeding abruptly.

His own fist prickled and his arm was still tense. He couldn't think. It seemed as if this moment of nothing would last forever.

But as it usually is, the moment passed. It was ended by a pair of small hands pushing at Sam's arm, forcing him to the side. Then a flash of blonde hair in front of him, and suddenly Sam was back in reality.

Quinn had seen it all from afar. As soon as she had turned the corner, she'd seen Sam standing inches away from Gus. Though she couldn't see his face, she could see the red spots on his neck, and the way his jaw was clenching.

She heard the two boys argue about her, she saw the drama unfold. And at last, she'd seen Sam punch Gus in the nose – and that ripped her out of her frozen position. The sound of her tall friend hitting the floor made her run over to the two boys, pushing Sam aside and kneeling next to Gus, putting a hand under his head.

"What's wrong with you?" She yelled at Sam.

He just stood there, his mouth slightly open, his eyes blank.

"What's wrong with you?" She yelled again, this time even louder.

Slowly, Sam shook his head and looked at his former girlfriend. "H-he… he called you a slut."

"What?" Quinn asked incredulously, looking from Sam to Gus and back to Sam again.

"No no," Gus stuttered, in between cries of pain. "No, I did not."

Quinn gently stroke his hair, trying to hold her tears back at the sight of her friend's bloody nose.

"Yes, you did, don't lie to her!" Sam exclaimed a little louder this time. "You called her a slut. You said that she has a lot of boys around."

"It is true," Gus said, turning his head slightly to face Quinn, looking up at her. "You _do_ have a lot of boys." Quinn immediately recognized his choice of words from one of their previous conversations regarding Gus' little sister.

"Shut up," Sam yelled, taking a step closer.

"Sam, stop it!" Quinn hissed, her eyes burning. "He didn't mean it like that, he only s-"

"Don't defend him, I know what I heard!" Sam interrupted angrily, keeping his eyes on Gus.

"Back off," Quinn yelled even louder, finally creating eye contact with the blonde boy. "He didn't mean it like that. I know what he meant. It's just how he expresses himself, he doesn't know the correct phrase!"

"Quinn, I-" Sam began, but she interrupted him:

"Don't. You misunderstood him and ended up punching him. You're such an idiot, just get lost."

"Please,"

"No, Sam. Just… go away."

He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, but decided that there was nothing more he could do. Crestfallenly he turned around, but ended up standing face to face with Rachel Berry who had followed Quinn.

She was frowning, looking rather shocked, but her features softened as she noticed the hurt look in his eyes.

"Sam," she began, but he just pushed past her. He then quickly walked down the hallway, trying to escape everything. _Everyone._

Rachel turned to Gus, who was still lying on the floor, his blonde friend caressing his cheeks.

"Is he okay?" She asked.

"I think his nose might be broken," Quinn said worriedly. "We need to get him to a doctor."

"No no no," Gus exclaimed, his head resting in Quinn's lap. "_Mes paren__ts américaine vont être inquiets. C'est pas une bonne idée_." ["My American parents will be worried. It's not a good idea."]

"We'll just say you spent the afternoon at my place. Rach, can you give us a ride?"

"Of course."

They skipped the last period to take care of Gus.

...

Sam was in his bed that evening, lying flat on his back, and thinking about what had happened today. He knew that he'd overreacted; punching someone is always overreacting. But he'd most definitely been overreacting, considering the subject of the fight wasn't even his girlfriend.

At that very moment, his actual girlfriend called him.

"Hello," Sam asked, lazily pressing the phone to his ear.

"Hi Sam, it's me."

"Oh. Hey." He had known exactly who it was, since her name and picture had been on the display, but his thoughts were in another place.

"I just wanted to… uh, do we still have a date tonight?"

"Oh. Yeah, sure," Sam said, sitting up slightly. Because of the eventful day, he had completely forgotten about his date with his girlfriend. He wasn't really feeling like going somewhere, but he sure as hell couldn't stand her off now. And perhaps, just perhaps, it would get his mind off that horrible fight he had experienced earlier that day. "I'll come and pick you up right away."

"No, don't!" Mercedes exclaimed, much to Sam's surprise. "I think it's better if I come to your house."

"Uh, okay," he mumbled. "I'll leave the door open."

Half an hour later, he heard the front door open and close and then footsteps up the stairs. There was a light knock on the door before Mercedes entered his room. Sam was still lying on the bed (above the sheets though) dressed in a white t-shirt and black shorts.

"Hey," he greeted, sitting up.

"Hi." She threw her jacket at his desk and sat down on the bed next to him and he kissed her cheek. "So, I heard."

"Heard what?" he asked.

"Come on, Sam. You know what I'm talking about."

He pouted a bit, not wanting to meet her eyes.

"Jewfro has already written about it on his blog, so you might as well come clean."

"It's not that big a deal…"

"You busted Gus' nose. That IS a big deal! And it's not like you at all!" Mercedes yelled.

"Sorry, but he was being a total jack-ass!"

"What did he do to you?"

"It doesn't matter, he was just being douchy."

"What did he do, Sam?"

"Nothing-"

"Then why did you hit him?"

"Because he said something really nasty 'bout Quinn!"

"So this all happened because of Quinn," she said quietly.

"That's not the point. The point is he was acting like an idiot and he needed to back off. I may have overreacted and Im sorry 'bout that, but Gus wasn't innocent in this."

"He was acting like an idiot… towards Quinn, you mean."

"Uh, yeah, well, I would've beaten him up for being rude to any of you girls."

"But it wasn't any of us other girls. It was Quinn."

Sam sighed heavily and got up from his bed. "I don't want to talk about this."

"Fine, I'll talk," Mercedes said calmly. "You still love Quinn."

"No I don't!" Sam said a little too hastily, frowning at the other end of the room.

"Yes. You do. Don't you think I notice, Sam? You're always looking at her, you get in a crappy mood if she's laughing with Gus, and you still have lover's quarrels with her."

"I've… I've never cheated on you," Sam whispered.

"I know. But what you're doing now - giving her all of your attention – that's just as bad as cheating, Sam."

"What?... I don't think I understand," Sam mumbled, crossing his arms. "I don't love her. And I've never lied to you."

"No, you've never lied to me, 'cause you're a good guy. And you might not even be aware of this yourself, but you do still love her."

Sam walked over to her, shaking his head, but she continued:

"Please don't interrupt me. Look, this is not how it's supposed to be. If a guy insults a girl who's just your acquaintance, you're not supposed to lose your temper like you did today. You're simply supposed to tell him to mind his own business. You only lose your temper when you love that girl."

Sam cocked his head, still not quite understanding.

"Sam, this affect she has on you; you obviously still has feelings for her."

"Well, she's my ex-girlfriend, so it's pretty natura-"

"No Sam, it's not natural to act like that around your ex-girlfriend. You don't see Finn acting like that, do you?"

"But… I love you," he mumbled, kneeling down in front of her.

"No, you don't. You like me – maybe a lot, but you definitely don't love me."

"That's not true,"

"Yes it is. Sam, when you disappeared at the winter dance, do you know what I did in the meantime? I danced with pretty much every single guy from the jazz band. That's right, I was flirting with about ten other guys, and you didn't care at all, even upon seeing me with them when you returned."

"Of course I would've cared, but I just, I didn't notice you were flirting with them!"

"And that's exactly the problem, Sam. You don't notice it; you don't notice when I'm flirting with other guys, you don't notice when I'm feeling down, and you don't notice when I'm trying to get your attention. And you do with her – you notice all those things about her. That's what proves it: You love Quinn Fabray, not me. And that's why I'm breaking up with you."

Sam blinked a few times in confusion before letting himself fall down next to her on the bed. "Y-you're breaking up with me."

"Yes, I am. But it doesn't have to be a bad thing, though. We can still remain friends. Close friends, even."

"I'm so sorry, Mercedes," he said upon thinking about all the things she had said to him. "I've been a douchebag and a really bad boyfriend to you. I guess you're right, you know, 'bout me and Quinn, but I swear I had no idea that I still had feelings for her." He knew he sounded like a complete idiot, but he honestly hadn't thought their relationship through.

"It's okay Sam, it's a guy-thing, I guess. You're too much of a skinny white boy for me anyways, I need a real man," she smiled, trying to put him at ease.

"I feel so bad, though."

"Please don't, it's okay. No really, I'm okay. This isn't any shocking news to me. I've noticed whatever is between you two for quite some time – I was just wondering when it would be too much for our relationship."

"So you're not mad at me?"

"Nah, I think you and I are better as friends. We never really loved each other, did we?"

"I guess not. I really do like you, though. You're the funniest and coolest girl I've ever met."

"I'm a gem, I know," she laughed and he joined in. "So what did happen between you and Gus today?"

Sam hesitated a bit.

"It's okay Sam, you can tell me. I'm no longer your jealous girlfriend. Now, I'm just your friend, who happens to be a girl, and who wants to give her male friend a piece of good advice."

"Well, I saw Gus ditching Quinn today to hang out with a couple of other girls and then I saw Quinn crying, so I got kind of pissed. Then I decided to confront him and we kind of ended up arguing. It came to a point where he called Quinn a slut."

"Really? Gus called Quinn a slut? That doesn't sound like him at all. And, I mean, Quinn, of all girls to be called a slut…"

"Apparently he didn't call her a slut, he was just… I don't know, he was using some wrong words and I misunderstood him."

"So you punched him."

"Yep."

"So what? Go and apologize to him tomorrow and everything will be all right. He's a guy too, he'll understand. Why are you so down?"

"First of all, I don't really like Gus and I don't really want to apologize. But even if I did apologize, he'd understand, sure. But Quinn wouldn't."

"Oh. She saw it?"

"Uh-huh, everything and she was pissed."

"I can imagine. She'll get over it eventually. After all, her temper isn't as bad as it used to be."

"Maybe, but I don't think she'll ever really forgive me. God, the hatred in her eyes. I swear, she looked like I'd shot her parents or something."

"I actually think she'd rather have you shoot her parents than hurting Gus," Mercedes chuckled.

Sam smiled, but he wasn't laughing with her.

"Don't worry, Sam," his friend assured him, padding his back. "She'll definitely forgive you at some point. You're too important to her, she can't stay mad at you."

"So… you think I still have a shot? I mean, I know she's in love with Gus and everything, but… do you think she still might be in love with me as well?"

"Easy now, we just broke up tonight. I'm not going to take care of your love life right away."

"Uh no, of course not," Sam said, running his fingers through his hair. "Sorry."

"It's okay," she grinned, grabbing her jacket from his desk. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sam."

"Do you want me to escort you to your car?"

"No, I'll let myself out." She opened the door and stepped out into the hall, but returned a second later. "But for the record: yeah, I think you still have a shot. I haven't exactly been close to Quinn this year, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't love Gus. She's not very good at hiding those kinds of things."

Sam looked a bit confused, so she continued:

"Quinn may be shy and reserved, but those eyes are tell-tale. I think you still have a shot." With a smirk, Mercedes closed the door and walked downstairs.

It was a bittersweet night for Sam. He was happy that he'd realized his feelings for Quinn and he was thrilled that he'd might still have a shot at winning her heart, but he was sad to see Mercedes go. Of course she was right, that they'd be better at being friends than they'd been at being lovers, but nevertheless he was going to miss her. He might not love her, but he sure had grown fond of her during the last six months. Just before he went to sleep, Sam grabbed his cell phone and texted Mercedes.

_Maybe I don't love you as a lover but I really do love you as a friend. I do love you cedes, I really do!_

He hit 'send' a turned off the phone, putting it on his night stand. After a little while he drifted off into sleep, exhausted from all the events of the day.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading!<strong>  
>And once again thanks for some marvelous reviews. You guys are just.. ugh, I totally need a gif to express my feelings. I love you, I love you all. Really.<br>I'm really flattered that so many of you enjoyed the Winter Dance chapters. They were a lot of fun to write, so that's just great. This chapter, on the other hand, I struggled quite a bit with it since I'm really not good at writing drama. I'm better at the little insignificant conversations, details and every day things. I hope this is okay, though - I kind of needed a big plot-turner, thus Sam losing his temper.  
>Oh yeah, a last note: Please don't be too touchy regarding the girls from the drama club: I mean absolutely no offence to drama clubs, I'm in one myself. Their conversations is simply based on what I usually hear girls gossip like. Always stupid, always pointless, always very hurtful.<p> 


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